What Is Happiness?
by zavyntara
Summary: Two enemies finally come to an understanding. Together, can they survive anything that is thrown their way? Slash
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

Harry's POV

What is happiness, I wonder? Is it an illusion, a false idea made up by people who indulge in wishful thinking? Or is it real? I wouldn't know because happiness, real or not, is something that I have never experienced.

I grew up thinking that I was worthless, that I was a burden. I grew up thinking that my parents had died in a car crash. I grew up thinking that I was someone other than the person I am now. My "family"--my aunt, uncle, and cousin--despise "my kind." They kept me in the dark about my identity for ten years. They punish me for things that "my kind" must have caused, but that "my kind" had nothing to do with.

I am a wizard.

I wasn't told about this until I was eleven, and that was when I got an invitation to go to school at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I was excited about this news.

But I wasn't happy.

I am put on a pedestal because I "killed" the Dark Lord Voldemort when I was a baby. I am known as the Boy-Who-Lived. The savior of the wizarding community. The son of Lily and James Potter, who were killed by Lord Voldemort. My mother's love and sacrifice saved me, and I am the only person in the world who has survived Avada Kedavra--the Killing Curse.

Since my first year at Hogwarts, I've met with the Dark Lord three times. The first time was _in_ my first year, when one of my professors was the host body for Voldemort. I killed him, and one of my best friends was hurt that day.

The second time was in my second year, when Tom Riddle--Voldemort--lured Ginny Weasley into the Chamber of Secrets. I killed him. She almost died.

The third time was just last year, at the Third Task of the Triwizard Tournament. Cedric Diggory and I grabbed the Cup at the same time, and it was a portkey that lead to Voldemort and his Death Eaters. Cedric was killed. I managed to escape, with Cedric's body.

How many people have died because of me? My parents, Professor Quirrell, Cedric, and countless others. All because I haven't really defeated Voldemort.

I don't want anyone else to die because of me.

So I will die for them instead.

Standing here in the window of the Astronomy Tower, I look down to the ground. It's a long way down, but I don't care. I'll be dead before I reach the ground. 

Right before I take a breath, I hear a voice speak to me.

"Well, Potter, it looks like you and I had the same idea tonight." I sigh, shaking my head. Malfoy. It figures that if anyone would find me, it would be him.

"What do you want, Malfoy?" I asked, willing my voice not to shake.

"I was _planning_ on being in the same situation you're in right now, but you beat me to it." Malfoy steps over closer to me. "I'm a little curious now as to why the Boy-Who-Lived, everyone's favorite Golden Boy, wants to do himself in."

"That's none of your business. Now if you'll kindly go away, I'd like to have some peace before I die."

"Oh, no way, Potter. I can't let you do this." I roll my eyes.

"Why the bloody hell not? Wouldn't you just _love_ to see the person you despise, jumping out of a window and falling a hundred feet to his death?"

"Yes, I would. However, my father isn't here, and even if he was, he probably wouldn't do that." I turn my head sharply at this confession. "I don't despise you, Potter. I may not like you very much sometimes, but I don't despise you." Malfoy holds out his hand. "Come on. You don't need to do this, Potter. Think about what you'd be doing to nearly everyone in the wizarding community. They're all counting on you."

"I've had plenty of time to think about things this past summer, Malfoy," I whisper, turning back to look out the window again. "When you're locked in a closet for three months, there isn't much else to do. And they shouldn't be counting on me. I've done more damage than good already; so many people have died already because of me..."

"Potter." Malfoy's voice is suddenly soft and gentle. "Please. Come down from there." He still holds his hand out. 

I look back and forth between his hand and the ground. Should I trust someone who has made my life hell for the past four years? I look to his eyes, his beautiful gray eyes, and I see nothing but sincerity. Damn it.

I reach my own hand out, and he grabs it. He helps me step down to the floor from the ledge, and I immediately sink to the cold concrete, hugging my knees to my chest. Malfoy sits next to me, though not too close. We don't speak at first. I just listen to the sound of his breathing: shaky, shallow. Had he been scared? I shake my head slightly, getting the thought out of my mind. Draco Malfoy doesn't get scared, especially over me.

"Cedric's death really hit you hard, didn't it?" Malfoy asks, suddenly.

"It's my fault," I mumble. "I told him to take the cup with me, and he died because of it."

"How could you possibly have known that the cup was a portkey? If you'd known, and you _still_ told him to take it with you, then yes, it would be your fault. But you didn't know." I don't reply. "What happened to you this summer? Why were you locked in a closet for three months?"

"Didn't you know, Malfoy? My aunt and uncle hate magic and everything associated with it. They had to make sure I wouldn't, you know, curse them or something. They only let me out to beat me." Malfoy pales a little. "Yeah, you probably thought my life was perfect, didn't you? Golden Boy Potter, treated like a king wherever he goes? If I had a knut for every person who thought that..." I shake my head, sighing, and glance at Malfoy. "Why do you care, anyway?"

"Let's just say I know what you're going through... I never did hate you, Potter. I had to act like I did. Otherwise, my father... You don't know the kind of power he has. I have to act like I agree with him on everything, or else he'll..." Malfoy sighs, pressing his fingers against his temples. "I don't even want to think about what he'd do to me." He continues with another subject.

"I know how you feel, thinking that people die because of you. My father tells me about some of the things the Death Eaters do to Muggles, half-bloods, Muggle-borns... There have been so many times when I could have stopped someone from being killed. But I was always too much of a child to stand up to my father or cross him by telling someone."

"So what happens if he finds out that you stopped me from killing myself?" Malfoy shrugs his shoulders.

"I don't care. I'm not going to act like a child anymore. I'm not going to be scared of him anymore." 

I just stare at him for a moment. I search his beautiful face for any signs that he was lying. Beautiful? Where did that come from? Well, he _is_ beautiful... And he's not lying. Finally, I speak to him again.

"Thank you, Draco." He looks surprised that I've used his first name, but he smiles.

"You're welcome, Harry."


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

Third-person POV

Several days later, Harry Potter sat at breakfast in the Great Hall with his friends Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley. After talking to Draco, he'd been feeling a little better. Talking to Draco, however, had brought on some _new_ feelings for Harry. He couldn't figure out why they had come about, and he spent a lot of time thinking about those feelings, and about Draco Malfoy in general.

Suddenly a group of owls came through the Great Hall, dropping notes and gifts in front of students. Two owls came to Harry, one being a familiar black eagle owl. They both dropped rolled up pieces of parchment on the table in front of him, then flew off. Harry picked up one letter and unrolled it.

__

Harry,

Hey, kiddo, how are you? How's school going so far this year? I'm doing well. I've been talking to Dumbledore, and we're working on finding times when I can come visit you. He'll let you know as soon as we figure something out.

Your last letter seemed a little strange, Harry. Should I be worried? You know that whenever you need anything, you can owl me and I'll be there as soon as I possibly can.

Say hi to Ron and Hermione.

Love,

Snuffles

Harry sighed silently. His godfather, Sirius Black, was still hiding out from the Ministry of Magic. He was always on the run, though he tried to be there for Harry whenever he possibly could. One of these days, Harry knew, Sirius would be caught and given the Dementor's Kiss. And Harry knew that it would be his fault.

Pushing the thought from his head, Harry opened the next letter. In neat handwriting, it read:

__

H.,

I'll be there for you, if you're there for me. Hell, even if you aren't there for me, I'll be there for you. I'm sorry for the past four years. I really do care.

Meet me in the Astronomy Tower at 11:00 tonight.

D.

Harry's heart began to race as he read this note. He quickly rolled it back up before anyone else could read, then looked across the room to the Slytherin table. The silver-haired boy was sitting with his friends, who were laughing at some stupid joke or another. He looked completely bored, however, as he rested his chin in his hand, his elbow propped up on the table. He gave his friends what looked to be a forced smile, then glanced at Harry, who flinched at the sudden eye contact. 

__

Merlin, he's gorgeous, Harry and Draco thought to themselves at the exact same time. 

Draco smiled slightly at the blush that was rising in Harry's cheeks and winked. Then he rolled his eyes at the other boy, nodding towards his friends. Harry chuckled a little.

"What are you laughing at, Harry?" Ron wondered suddenly. Harry looked at him.

"Nothing, just...nothing." Ron shrugged his shoulders and went back to eating, and Harry heard Hermione mumble something under her breath.

"At least he's laughing at all." 

At that, Harry's eyes saddened a little as he thought of what he must have been doing to his friends. He hadn't sent them a single owl all summer; but that wasn't his fault. He hadn't been allowed. And now he couldn't even tell them why, and what had happened to him.

Giving a soft sigh, Harry looked back at Draco. He was staring back at Harry, curiously. Harry just bit his lip and shook his head. At that time, Professor McGonagall came up behind Harry.

"Mr. Potter, the Headmaster would like to see you in his office before your first class. Come with me, please." 

Harry gathered his books and supplies, then followed McGonagall up to Dumbledore's office. They stopped in front of a gargoyle statue, and McGonagall spoke the password. The gargoyle moved aside, allowing them to enter.

"Headmaster, Mr. Potter is here," McGonagall announced. Dumbledore came to greet Harry, and McGonagall left.

"Hello, Mr. Potter! How are you doing this morning? Would you like a lemon drop?" 

"No, thank you, sir, and I'm doing fine, thanks." Dumbledore motioned for Harry to sit down in a chair, and then the headmaster sat behind his desk.

"As you may know, your godfather and I have been trying to work out a visitation schedule for him, until his name is cleared." Harry nodded. "He is very close to being proven innocent, with the help of Remus Lupin."

"Where is Sirius now?" Harry wondered. "I know that you know, sir." Dumbledore smiled, that ever-present twinkle showing in his eye.

"He is living with Remus right now, in a house right outside of Hogsmeade. He keeps himself well-hidden in that house, and he only goes outside in his Animagus form." He went back to the subject of visitation. "Sirius and I have decided that every other Sunday, you can go to Remus's house for a few hours to visit. If you would like to, that is." Harry's eyes lit up a little.

"Of course I'd like to!" he exclaimed. "That would be great!"

"All right, then. This Sunday, Remus will meet you at the Three Broomsticks and take you from there."

"Thank you, sir." Dumbledore's expression then became serious as he gazed at Harry.

"Harry, something has been troubling you since you arrived at school this year. Is it Cedric?" Sighing, Harry nodded.

"Part of it," he replied, truthfully.

"I won't push you to tell me the rest of it. But know this, dear boy: I don't like to see you so upset. If you need to get something off of your chest, feel free to come up here again." Harry nodded and stood up.

"Thank you, sir," he repeated. With that, he left and headed for his first class of the day, Potions. At least it wouldn't be nearly as bad as in past years. Draco was on his side now.

~~~

At ten to eleven that night, Harry got his invisibility cloak and sneaked up to the Astronomy Tower. He found Draco, sitting on the floor in a dark corner and waiting. Harry just watched the boy for a moment. He looked so serene, so peaceful that Harry didn't want to disturb him. Still, after a few minutes, he removed the cloak and went to sit next to Draco.

"What's up?" Harry asked. Draco glanced at him and gave him a small, half-hearted smile. "This can't be good."

"I...told Dumbledore some of the things my father's done to me. I told Snape, too; he's my godfather."

"Are they doing anything about it?" Harry wondered, softly. Draco nodded.

"They're getting me out of his custody. Severus is going to have custody of me." He pulled his knees to his chest and rested his chin on his knees. "I lied, Harry, about not being scared of my father anymore. He's going to be so angry when finds out I told. Even if he's sent to Azkaban, his Death Eater friends will come after me, and I-I'm really scared."

"Understandable," Harry said, quietly. "But Dumbledore and Snape and all the other teachers... They'll keep you safe, won't they? They won't let anything happen to you."

"That doesn't stop me from being scared." Harry placed a hand on Draco's shoulder, and Draco looked up.

"_I_ won't let anything happen to you, Draco," Harry told him, staring into Draco's eyes. Draco stared back for a moment, then blinked and looked down at his hands.

"Harry, when you're around me, do you¼_feel_ things?" he asked in a strangely quiet voice. "Do you get strange feelings?"

"Yes, I do," Harry responded, just as quietly. "I think¼ I think I know what they mean¼ But I'm not sure."

"I think I know, too," Draco said, softly. Suddenly, he stood up. "Thanks for talking to me, Harry. I'll see you later." Harry stared at the silver-haired boy as he ran away.

After a few moments, Harry slipped the invisibility cloak over himself again. He slowly walked back to Gryffindor Tower and went to his dorm, climbing into bed. But he knew that sleep wouldn't be coming to him any time soon.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

Two days later was Sunday afternoon, the day Harry was to visit with Sirius. The students of Hogwarts were taking a trip to Hogsmeade that day, and when they got there, Harry met up with Remus Lupin at The Three Broomsticks.

"Hello, Harry," Remus greeted him. 

"Hi, Remus," Harry said with a small smile. 

"I'd ask you if you'd like a drink, but I'm assuming that you want to hurry up and see Snuffles?" Harry nodded, his eyes sparkling a little. "All right, then, let's go."

The two walked a short way to a house outside of the shopping town. Remus had explained that he would have apparated with Harry, but he wanted the boy to learn the way to the house, in case he ever needed to come on his own.

Remus opened the front door to the house and ushered Harry in. Harry immediately saw Sirius in the living room and ran to him, hugging him tightly. Sirius and Remus just laughed.

"Hey, kiddo, I missed you, too!" Sirius exclaimed. Harry pulled away, smiling.

"I'll leave you two alone for a bit and make some tea," Remus said. He placed a hand on Sirius's shoulder and leaned over, whispering something to him. Sirius's face turned red, and Remus just grinned as he left the room.

"Do I even want to know what he said?" Harry wondered, smirking. 

"No, you don't. Trust me on that one, Harry. So what's going on with you? I didn't hear from you over the summer. And even since school started, you haven't told me much, just that you were fine and classes are going well. I was kind of worried for a while."

"I'm sorry," Harry sighed, sincerely. "I couldn't send any owls over the summer. Uncle Vernon wouldn't let me." Sirius's eyes narrowed with anger. "Don't worry about it, Sirius. Don't do anything that will get you in trouble. You're already so close to having your name cleared. Don't screw up because of me, all right?"

"Next summer, Harry," Sirius said, softly. "Next summer, I'll be free, and you can live with me and Remus."

"Speaking of you and Remus, how are you two doing?" Harry asked. Sirius smiled, still blushing a little.

"We're doing quite well, thank you." Harry laughed a little when the older man offered no more details and switched the subject. "Harry, are you happy? There's something in your eyes¼ Something is going on, but I can't tell if it's good or bad." Harry sighed and laid his head on his godfather's shoulder.

"I'm confused," he murmured. "Someone who I thought hated me helped me out last week with something. It turns out that we really have a lot in common, and I can talk to him about things¼ He's just so different than he used to be. But ever since that day he helped me, I've had these¼_strange_ feelings when I'm around him, and he says he has the same feelings. I think I know what they mean; actually, I'm almost certain of what they mean, but¼I'm just confused."

"Tell me about these feelings," Sirius requested. He smiled to himself; he didn't need to hear about the feelings to know what they meant. He could tell just by listening to Harry.

"Whenever I'm talking to him or thinking about him or just _sitting_ with him, I feel¼I feel good. I feel alive. My heart starts beating really fast, and all I want to do is just look at him and spend my time with him, and-" Harry's eyes widened. "Merlin, I'm in love with him¼" Sirius chuckled.

"Hell, I could have told you that five minutes ago!" Harry glared at him, then smiled a little. "So who's the lucky guy?" Harry frowned and looked at his hands.

"I can't tell you. You'll think I'm crazy or you'll get mad¼" Sirius lifted Harry's chin up with his fingers.

"Harry, I promise I won't get mad, and I won't think you're crazy. I'm happy that my godson has found someone who makes _him_ happy, and I'd just like to know who it is."

"Draco Malfoy," Harry whispered, bracing himself for the shout that he knew was coming. When it didn't come, he looked up at his godfather. "You're not mad?"

"I promised you I wouldn't be," Sirius reminded him, smiling a little. "I'm a little surprised, I'll admit. But I've always been wondering when that boy would come to his senses and start to think for himself instead of doing everything his father says."

"So¼what do you think I should do about it?" Harry wondered.

"Do whatever your heart tells you to, kiddo," Sirius replied, gently. "I did, and look where it's gotten me." Harry smiled slightly.

"So if I pursue these feelings, then sometime soon, Draco will be whispering things in my ear that make me blush?" Sirius's eyes widened, and he cheeks burned once again.

"I should hope not! At least, not for a while, considering you're only fifteen." Harry hugged Sirius.

"Thank you, Sirius," he said, softly. Sirius raised his eyebrows. "For¼I don't know¼ Everything, just¼ Thank you."


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

Tuesday morning, Harry was a lot more cheerful at breakfast. He actually talked to his friends and ate his food, and everyone noticed the change in his demeanor. The cause of this change? Part of it was his visit with Sirius and Remus, but the main reason was Draco.

The two hadn't spoken much since the night at the Astronomy Tower. They sent messages to one another through their body language, however. Every smile, every gaze, every wave-they all had a discreet meaning between Harry and Draco, though they may have been directed towards others in the room.

Soon the post owls came flying in. An owl came to Harry, dropping a rose and a note in front of him. The rose was yellow with red edges. Harry had an idea of who it was from, but he couldn't open the note with everyone watching, so he just held onto it for a moment. His friends started teasing him about the rose.

"Aw, Harry's got a girlfriend!" George Weasley exclaimed. Harry grinned, though he was the only one who knew how wrong George was.

"Harry, do you know what that rose means?" Hermione asked. "A yellow rose with red edges symbolizes 'falling in love!'" Harry blushed a little and waited a few minutes until the attention was off of him before reading the note.

__

Harry,

Imagine a river flowing quite free,

unaware of where it's flowing to.

Imagine an Island with just you and me,

surrounded by an ocean, under a sky of blue.

Imagine an Eagle, soaring quite high,

with the wind beneath its wings.

Imagine it carrying just you and I,

to a land where the Nightingale sings.

Imagine climbing the world's highest peak,

And standing and shouting our names.

Imagine being stranded for more than a week,

Being together, alone, without shame.

Imagine the sea crashing onto the shore,

Frothing, foaming and splashing in rage.

Imagine us standing and wishing for more,

As the book of our life turns a page.

Imagine being together, not in a dream,

holding and touching and being lovers.

Imagine what bliss that notion would bring,

together in love... and alone with each other.

I know what the feelings mean, Harry, and if you want to pursue it, then I do, too. Meet me, same place, same time, tonight.

P.S.-It's good to see you happy again.

Harry reread the poem three more times, trying to ingrain it in his mind. He was touched by the poem, and he smiled as his heartbeat quickened once more. He cast a quick glance towards the Slytherin table and saw Draco yawning and rubbing his eyes sleepily.

__

Oh, that's just too cute, Harry thought to himself. Draco looked at him, saw the rose in his hand, and winked at him. Harry just smiled. _I can tell he's going to be a romantic._

"So who was it from, Harry?" Ron asked. Harry's head snapped up to look at him, and he hesitated.

"Um, no one," he mumbled. "I mean, it wasn't signed." That was true; Draco _hadn't_ signed the note. Ron just looked at Harry suspiciously before shrugging his shoulders and turning to talk to Seamus.

~~~

I did not write that poem, but I don't remember who did. I found it on a love quotes website of some sort.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

"This is going to be hard, you know," Harry said, softly, as he sat next to Draco in the Astronomy Tower that night. "Are we going to tell people?"

"In time," Draco responded. "I don't think we should, at first. I know of a lot of people who don't..._approve_ of same-sex relationships, and while I really don't care what they think of me... They could really do some damage." Harry nodded his understanding. "We could tell a couple people, if we need to, but not a lot." Draco sighed. "We'll have to sneak out a lot to see each other."

"Not necessarily," Harry said. "Um... My godfather and his boyfriend have a house right outside of Hogsmeade. I go there every other Sunday to visit. I can ask them if we can go over there sometimes." Draco nodded, smirking a little.

"I know about Sirius," he said. "I know he's innocent." Harry let out a sigh of relief.

"Good. But he's still 'hiding out' from the Ministry, so we can't talk about him much."

"Who's his boyfriend?" Draco wondered. 

"Remus Lupin. Remember, third year Defense?" Draco thought for a moment, then nodded.

"I remember. The only decent Defense teacher we've had." They were silent for a moment, until Harry spoke again.

"Did you write the poem?" Draco nodded, blushing a little. "I liked it. And the rose. Thank you." Draco just smiled, reaching out for Harry's hand and intertwining their fingers.

"Have you ever been in a relationship?" Draco asked, softly. Harry shook his head. "I haven't, either. Hopefully, we'll be sharing a lot more 'firsts' in the future."

"I was right," Harry murmured, more to himself than to Draco.

"Right about what?" Harry looked up and smiled.

"After I got your letter and rose this morning, I could tell that you were going to be a romantic. I was right." Draco smiled back. Suddenly, Harry frowned.

"What's wrong?" Draco asked, gently.

"You aren't going to get into any trouble or anything over this if people find out, are you?" Harry asked. "I mean, Snape hates me. Everyone in Slytherin hates me--" Draco placed a finger over Harry's lips.

"Shh. Don't worry about it. What are they going to do, tell my father?" Harry cracked a small smile. "There you go. I like to see you smile."

"Who do you want to tell?" Harry asked after a moment.

"I'll probably tell Severus. That's about it. You?"

"Sirius kind of already knows." Draco raised his eyebrows. "Well, when I went over there on Sunday, I told him about those feelings I was having. He just wanted to know who was making me happy." Draco smiled and squeezed Harry's hand. "And Remus will have to know, of course. I don't want to-- I can't tell my friends. Not yet, anyway. Maybe a couple of them would understand, but...they'd hate me. They'd hate _you_."

"They already hate me," Draco reminded him.

"They'd hate you _more_, then..." Harry covered his mouth and yawned. Draco laughed at him a little.

"It's getting late, eh?" Draco stood up, then pulled Harry up as well. "You get some sleep, all right?" Harry nodded, smiling.

"You know, you look cute when you're sleepy in the morning," he teased Draco, who blushed. "And when you winked at me... That was sexy." Draco chuckled and leaned in closer to Harry, holding his hands.

"You haven't seen the half of it yet," Draco murmured into Harry's ear, giving the boy chills. "Go on, go to bed. Good night."

"Good night, Draco," Harry whispered. He started to turn around to leave, but Draco stopped him.

"Oh, and Harry?" Draco pulled Harry back and gave him a short, teasing kiss on his lips. "Sweet dreams, love." Draco smiled slyly and left the tower, while Harry just stood there, staring at him.

__

Oh, I'm going to get him for that...

Grinning, Harry pulled his invisibility cloak over himself and headed back to his dorm. Once there, he folded the cloak and put it away, then grabbed a roll of parchment and his quill. He sat on his bed, drawing the curtains, and began to write a letter.

__

Remus,

I'm sure you've been told about the recent events of my love life. I need to ask you a favor. D. and I won't be able to be together much without sneaking out. We've already decided that we're not going to tell many people at first, because it would cause a lot of trouble. So we have to sneak around when we want to see each other. Would it be possible for us to come over there every once in a while, on a weekend, so that we can spend time together without having to worry about somebody catching us? Send a reply back with Hedwig.

Thanks, and tell Snuffles I'm looking forward to our next visit.

Harry

Harry took the rolled up letter to his snowy owl, Hedwig, and let her out of her cage. He'd decided to keep her in the dorm at night for situations just like this, when he had to send a nighttime letter. During the day, she stayed in the Owlery. Harry tied the letter to Hedwig's leg and stroked her head. 

"Take this to Remus, all right, girl?" Hedwig answered with an affirmative nip to Harry's finger, and she flew out the window. Harry changed into his pajamas and climbed into bed, closing his eyes and immediately welcoming the sleep that engulfed him. And for the first time in months, he slept soundly.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

Harry slept _too_ soundly, in fact. The next morning, he awoke to find himself with twenty minutes before Potions class.

__

Damn it, why didn't anybody wake me up?

Harry sat up, hanging his feet over the edge of the bed, but he then he immediately lay back down, holding his aching head in his hands. He closed his eyes, moaning in pain. After a few minutes, he heard Ron's voice in the room.

"Harry, fifteen minutes before Potions," Ron told him. "Why aren't you up yet?" Harry moaned, tears welling up in his eyes from the pounding in his head.

"Ron, do me a favor..." he muttered. "Over by Hedwig's cage...there's a little bottle of Muggle painkillers. Open it and get five pills out for me..." Ron did so, and he read the label on the bottle as he took the pills out.

"It says you're only supposed to take two," Ron told Harry.

"Give me five," Harry responded. Ron shrugged his shoulders and gave the pills to Harry, who swallowed them. Ron then handed Harry two rolled up pieces of parchment.

"These were by Hedwig's cage."

"Thanks, Ron... Go on down, I'll get there as soon as I can." Ron agreed and left, while Harry tried to focus on reading the letters.

__

Harry,

I was told all about it, and yes, you can use the house. Just make sure you tell us ahead of time, and behave yourselves. You ARE only fifteen, after all.

Remus

Harry,

Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?

Thou art more lovely and more temperate:

Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,

And summer's lease hath all too short a date:

Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,

And often is his gold complexion dimm'd;

And every fair from fair sometime declines,

By chance, or nature's changing course untrimm'd;

But they eternal summer shall not fade,

Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow'st,

Nor shall death brag thou wander'st in his shade,

When in eternal lines to time thou grow'st;

So long as man can breathe, or eyes can see,

So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.

Shakespeare was a bloody genius, I'll say that much for the Muggle. Same time, same place, love. 

Harry smiled at the thought of Draco reading Shakespeare's sonnets. Then he looked at his clock and saw that he had ten minutes to class. He quickly changed his clothes, ignoring the wave of dizziness that came upon him, and rushed to brush his teeth and comb his hair. Finally, he grabbed his books and supplies and ran to the Potions classroom, making it in the door right as class was starting.

"Mr. Potter," Snape sneered at him. "How nice of you to join us. Ten points from Gryffindor for being late. Go to your seat."

Harry went to his seat next to Hermione in the back row. He put his books down and tried to catch his breath. He rubbed his eyes when his vision became blurry again, and he tried to concentrate on what Snape was saying.

"We're making a Dreamless Sleep Potion today, as Madam Pomfrey has run out. Third-years should be able to make them, so I should hope that asking you all to get them right is not asking too much." He then assigned partners. With an evil smirk, he finished with, "Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Potter."

__

Little does he know that this won't make us mad...

Draco came over to sit by Harry after grabbing the ingredients. As they made the potion, Draco whispered quietly to his boyfriend.

"I was worried," he murmured, almost inaudibly. "You weren't at breakfast, and you were late in here. Then when you _did_ come in here, you nearly fainted. What's up?"

"I slept in," Harry whispered back, closing his eyes and fighting the dizziness again. "Woke up with a bad headache."

"Go up to the hospital wing," Draco suggested, trying to make it so that nobody knew they were being civil to one another. Harry shook his head.

"I'll be fine." He changed the subject. "We're okay on the house." Draco nodded.

"Good... If you're still not feeling well later, forget about tonight. It's all right."

"I told you. I'll be fine." Draco sighed. "I was thinking we should tell Dumbledore. We could use his Floo to get to the house when we can't go through Hogsmeade." Draco nodded again.

"He probably already knows," he said with a tiny smile. "Omniscient, that one. After dinner tonight, if you're feeling all right, we'll go up and tell him."

"Did you tell Snape yet?" Draco shook his head.

"Eventually," he promised.


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

After Harry finished eating that evening, he glanced at Draco, who nodded and stood up. Harry turned to his friends.

"I'll see you guys later," he said. "I have to talk to Dumbledore." 

With that, he headed up to the Headmaster's office and met Draco at the statue. Harry spoke the password that McGonagall had used a few days prior, and the gargoyle moved aside. Dumbledore was sitting at his desk, and he smiled when he saw the boys.

"Ah, good evening, my dear boys!" he greeted them, cheerfully. "Lemon drop?"

"No, thank you." Harry and Draco sat in the chairs in front of the desk.

"What can I do for the two of you?"

"We have a favor to ask of you, sir," Draco said. "But first, we have to ask that you please don't tell anyone what we're going to tell you."

"You have my word, depending on what it is," Dumbledore replied.

"Sir, a few days before Draco told you about his...father...he stopped me from making a very big mistake. I was about to jump from the Astronomy Tower, and he stopped me." Dumbledore's eyes widened a little, but he didn't speak. "Ever since then, we've become very close. Did you see that rose I got yesterday morning?" Dumbledore nodded. "That was from Draco. Yellow roses with red edges symbolize 'falling in love.'"

"What Harry is trying to say, Professor," Draco said, reaching over to take Harry's hand, "is that we've fallen in love with each other." He paused, waiting for some kind of reaction, and was startled when Dumbledore smiled.

"I could tell that there was _something_ going on," he stated. "Continue."

"See, the thing is, we don't want many people to know just yet," Harry continued. "So far, we've told you, Sirius, and Remus."

"I'm planning on telling Severus tomorrow," Draco added. "So, keeping in mind that we don't want anyone else to know...we won't be able to spend much time together without sneaking out at night and such. And since we're such good, rule-abiding students, we would never do something like that. Right, Harry?"

"Right, Draco," Harry agreed, grinning. Dumbledore chuckled. "So I owled Remus last night and asked him if Draco and I could go over there whenever we needed some time together. Just on the weekends, not on school days, of course. He said that it's fine with him and Sirius, as long as we tell them in advance." Draco took over from here.

"If we were to walk to the house on weekends, that presents two problems: One, it would have to be a Hogsmeade weekend, and that would only be once a month; and two, we would be seen. That brings us to the favor part. Would it be possible--"

"Yes, you may use my fireplace from time to time," Dumbledore interrupted him. "As long as you promise me that you'll be careful, that you won't do anything stupid, and that you don't go anywhere besides Remus's house."

"You have a deal, sir," Draco said, grinning. "Wow, that was too easy."

"I assume that you don't wish to be seen leaving my office together, so I have a solution for that as well," Dumbledore continued. "Mr. Malfoy, you are finished here, but Mr. Potter, I'd like to speak with you." Harry sighed, knowing what was coming.

"Thank you, Professor," Draco said, standing up. He squeezed Harry's hand and leaned over to his ear. "Good luck, love. And don't worry about our 'meeting.' Just get some rest, all right?" Harry nodded. "Good night."

"Good night," Harry said. Draco left, and Harry looked down at his hands, fidgeting with his robes. "Sir, I know what you're going to ask me. You're going to ask me why I was going to jump from the Astronomy Tower."

"Yes, and I was also going to tell you that it wouldn't have worked," Dumbledore explained, softly. "I placed several spells and charms on it for that very reason. If you jumped, you would go maybe thirty or forty feet before being levitated to the ground. So why did you want to, Harry?"

"A lot of reasons," Harry mumbled. "I just felt like I couldn't be happy at all throughout my life... And I felt like I was doing more harm than good to the wizarding community. I didn't want anyone else to die because of me, so I decided that I wanted to die _for_ them. And then, um... There have been...problems with the Dursleys, sir." Dumbledore sighed.

"Harry, I know you don't like it there, but right now, it's--"

"The safest place for me, that's what you were going to say, right?" Dumbledore nodded. "Safe from Voldemort, yes. Safe from my aunt and uncle, no."

"Dear boy, what do you mean?" Harry took a breath.

"They locked me in that cupboard under the stairs for three months, the whole summer, Professor. They gave me bread and water every day or so, and they only let me out when they wanted to beat me. They locked me up to make sure I couldn't curse them, and then they let me out so they could try to beat the magic out of me. You and Draco are the only ones who know about this, sir." Dumbledore rubbed his eyes a little.

"Harry, I'm sorry, I thought that was the best place for you," he murmured. "Yes, I'll have to do something about this, indeed..."

"Sirius said he'll be free by the summer," Harry said, hopefully. "He said I can come and live with him and Remus." Dumbledore gave him a small smile.

"You'll probably end up living with them, either way," he said, softly. "Remus is your stand-in godfather while Sirius is still hiding out. He'd be your guardian, and you would most likely go to him for the summer." He changed the subject. "Is there anything else you'd like to say?"

"No, sir. To be honest, I'd like to get out of here and go to bed. I haven't been feeling well all day."

"All right, then. Sleep well, child, and good luck with Mr. Malfoy." Harry grinned, tiredly.

"Thank you, sir." And he left for Gryffindor Tower, collapsing on the sofa as soon as he reached the common room and falling asleep.


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

Over the next few days, Draco and Harry saw each other very little; only in classes and at meals. They sent notes to each other, though, and the next Sunday, they used Dumbledore's fireplace to go to Remus and Sirius's house. The two older wizards were sitting on the sofa, holding hands and talking softly to one another. They didn't even notice Draco and Harry, until Harry cleared his throat and reached down to take Draco's hand.

"Sirius, this is Draco. Draco, my godfather, Sirius Black." Draco gave a small wave. "Remus, I think you remember Draco." Remus nodded.

"Hello, Draco," he said, smiling. Sirius stood up and shook Draco's hand.

"It's nice to meet the boy who makes my godson so happy," he said. His voice lowered to almost a whisper. "But if you ever hurt him, you _will _regret it."

"Sirius!" Harry whined. Draco just smiled.

"I'd rather die than hurt Harry," he said, squeezing his boyfriend's hand. Sirius smiled and looked at Harry, who was blushing.

"I like him," Sirius said, pointing at Draco.

"Glad we have your approval," Harry laughed. "You two aren't staying, are you?"

"Well, somebody has to keep an eye on you boys," Sirius replied. Remus gently hit the back of Sirius's head.

"No, we're going out for about two hours," Remus said. "We'll be back around three o'clock, so if you're doing things you don't want us to see, make sure you're finished by then." Draco and Harry both blushed a little, causing the older men to laugh at them. 

"Harry, you know where everything is," Sirius added. "Please don't leave the house, all right?" Harry nodded. "We'll see you later, then." 

Sirius transformed into Snuffles, and he and Remus left. Harry and Draco sat on the sofa, and Harry laid his head on Draco's shoulder.

"Peace at last," Harry sighed. "We're alone for _two whole hours_. I love it..." Draco smiled and turned his head to kiss Harry's forehead.

"I love _you_," he murmured. Harry picked his head up and wrapped his arms around Draco's torso.

"And _I_ love _you_," Harry said, softly, before attaching his lips to Draco's. Draco let out a small moan and ran his fingers through Harry's hair.

"You kiss by the book," Draco teased when they pulled away. Harry only smiled.

"As much as I'd love to just sit here and kiss you for the next two hours," he said, tapping Draco's nose, "Remus and Sirius have all kinds of nifty stuff in this house that we should make good use of." Draco smiled, slyly.

"A bed?" Harry gave a small smile and shook his head.

"Not yet."

"I was only joking, love," Draco told him, gently. He changed the subject by pointing at a television with black box on top of it. "I know that's a television, but what is that on top of it?"

"It's a VCR," Harry replied. "Muggles use it to watch videos, which are those things right there." He pointed at a stack of movies on the floor. "Do you want to watch one?" Draco nodded, and within moments, the two of them were watching _Casablanca_.

"I never thought I'd be complimenting Muggles, but this VCR thing is brilliant," Draco said after a while. Harry smiled and stretched out on the couch, resting his head in Draco's lap. Draco laid one arm across Harry's waist and ran his other hand through the boy's hair.

"The only other time I've watched a movie was when I was nine," Harry murmured. "Of course, I had to look through the keyhole of the door to my cousin's bedroom, so that doesn't really count."

"Here's another of those firsts we're sharing, then," Draco said, smiling. Harry shifted his body a little. "Something wrong?"

"My back's sore," Harry sighed, trying to get comfortable.

"Lay on your stomach," Draco instructed him after getting up. Harry did so, and Draco knelt down next to the couch, gently placing his hands on Harry's back. The raven-haired boy tensed a little at the touch. "Relax, love. I'm not going to hurt you. I was just going to massage your back a little, try to make it stop hurting. All right?" 

Harry nodded, and Draco gently pressed his hands against the other boy's back, as Harry closed his eyes. After a moment, Draco spoke again.

"This isn't working quite well. Can you take your shirt off? It's in the way." Harry hesitated a moment, then bit his lip and pulled his shirt over his head. "Oh, dear Merlin¼"

Harry's back was covered with scars, welts, and other wounds that had not yet healed. One particular scar ran from Harry's left shoulder down to his waist. Draco covered his mouth with one hand and gently grazed the scar with his other hand.

"One of these days, Harry¼" he murmured. "One of these days, you and I are going back to those¼those¼I can't even think of a word demeaning enough to describe them¼ We're going to go back, and we're going to give them what they deserve. I promise you that." Draco leaned over and kissed Harry's forehead, resting his lips there for a moment.

"No, Draco," Harry mumbled. "I don't ever want to see them again." 

"What are you going to do for the summer holidays?" Draco asked, softly.

"I told Dumbledore what was going on... He said I can live here, with Sirius and Remus." Draco nodded.

"That's good. Severus said that depending on how things go this year, I'll probably have to stay at Hogwarts for at least part of the summer, because it's safer there than at his mansion. So me and you won't be far apart in the summer."

"I don't think I'll have a problem with that," Harry said, smiling a little.

"I don't think I will, either."


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

"Hi, Harry!" Hermione greeted him with what seemed like fake cheerfulness that evening. Hearing his name, everyone in the Gryffindor common room looked up and stared at him.

"Um, why are you all staring at me like that?" Harry asked, willing his voice to be steady. Everyone went back to what they were doing, and Harry looked at Hermione, who was making her way over to him. "Hermione, what's going on? Did I miss something while I was gone?"

"Harry, come with me," Hermione said, softly. "I need to tell you something." She took his hand and led him away from the others in the room, and they sat down on the floor.

"Hermione, please tell me what's going on," Harry pleaded. 

"Harry... Someone has been spreading a rumor about you. They said that they saw you and Malfoy together in the Astronomy Tower, and that you were looking really close." Harry snapped his head up, and his eyes were wide.

"Who said that?" he asked in a slightly shaky voice.

"Some Ravenclaw told a Slytherin, and now it's all over the school. It's not true, is it, Harry? I mean, you and _Malfoy_?" Harry didn't reply. "Harry?"

"What? Oh, no, of course it's not true. Don't worry." He stood up on trembling legs. "Listen, Hermione, I'm not feeling very well. I'm going to bed." With that, he went up to his dorm room and drew the curtains around his bed, sitting inside with parchment and a quill. He wrote two notes.

__

D.

They know.

Snuffles & Remus,

I think I'm going to need to visit you two before Sunday.

Harry

He wrote the names on the outsides of the notes, then rolled them up and tied them to Hedwig's legs.

"Take these to Draco first, then Remus, girl, all right?" Hedwig nipped affectionately at Harry's finger, then flew out the window.

Within an hour, Hedwig returned. The letter for Remus and Sirius was still on her leg, but the letter to Draco was on her other leg as well. Draco's name was crossed out, and Harry's was written on it. Harry took the letter and unrolled it, reading Draco's reply.

__

H.

So I've been told. I suppose we should just confirm it. Tomorrow at breakfast, all right? Don't worry, love, everything will be fine. I promise.

Harry sent Hedwig back out with Remus and Sirius's letter, then lay down in his bed. Pulling his blankets up to his shoulders, he closed his eyes and waited for the sleep that wouldn't come.

~~~

The Great Hall immediately became silent when Harry came in for breakfast the next morning. All of the students stared at him, as did several teachers. Harry stopped walking before he reached the tables. He glanced around at everyone uncertainly, his arms folded across his chest. Then, suddenly, he felt a comforting arm over his shoulders. He looked up and saw Draco giving him a reassuring smile. Harry attempted to smile back, but it didn't really work. Draco turned to look at the student body, and began to speak.

"Yes, if you must know, the rumors are true. Harry and I are together. We don't hate each other; in fact, we're very much in love. If you have a problem with that, see me about it." Still, everyone stared.

"Why are they still watching us?" Harry whispered.

"I assume they want proof," Draco responded, looking down at him. "All right with you, love?" Harry nodded slightly, and Draco brought his head down to kiss his boyfriend. The two broke apart and looked back at the students, seeing a mixture of expressions. Some were smiling, and some looked disgusted. Some looked like they didn't care either way. But they were still quiet, until suddenly three people were heard cheering from the Gryffindor table.

__

"All right, Harry!" they shouted, clapping their hands. Fred and George Weasley, and their best friend Lee Jordan. "Go on, Harry! Woo-hoo!" At that, Harry smiled a little, and Draco squeezed his shoulder, as the majority of the students resumed what they had been doing before the two had come in.

"Go on, love, sit with your friends," Draco said, softly. "Leave for Potions five minutes earlier than you normally do. I'll be waiting in the classroom for you." Harry nodded and slowly made his way to his usual breakfast seat, between Seamus and Hermione. He sat down, silently, and at first, nobody talked to him. Then Hermione spoke.

"So that rose you got," she said. "That was from Malfoy?" Harry nodded. "And all those letters you got every day that made you so happy? That's so sweet, Harry. I'm happy for you, though I'm curious as to why it's _Malfoy_."

"I'll tell you all about it later," Harry promised. "I'll just tell you right now that he's...different. The Draco Malfoy from the past four years, that wasn't who he really is. That was his father."

"Oi, Harry, if anyone tries to give you problems, you just let us know, all right?" Fred Weasley said. "Me and George, we'll accidentally send the Bludgers after them at Quidditch matches." Harry nodded, smiling a little.

"Thank you." He then looked at Ron, his best friend, who hadn't said a word. The red-haired boy just stared at his food, stabbing at it with his fork. "Ron? Ron, say something." _He hates me,_ Harry thought.

"Malfoy, Harry," Ron said, his voice barely above a whisper. "Draco bloody Malfoy? What the hell is wrong with you, Harry? It's bad enough that you're a bloody queer, but with _Draco Malfoy?_" Everyone who heard his words gasped when he used the hateful term against the boy who'd been his best friend only the day before. Harry felt hot tears pricking at his eyes, but he did a good job hiding them.

"Well, Ron...if that's how you feel..." Harry stood up. "It's been a good four years. I thought our friendship could survive worse things than this, but obviously I was wrong. Good-bye." 

With that, Harry left the Great Hall fifteen minutes early and headed up to Snape's classroom. Thankfully, Snape wasn't in there with any snide remarks for him, so Harry just went back to his seat and laid his head down in his arms, closing his eyes. Within moments, he felt a pair of familiar hands on his shoulders, gently squeezing. Not opening his eyes, Harry reached his hand up and rested it on Draco's.

"Things didn't go well?" Draco guessed, softly, as he sat next to Harry and placed a hand on his back.

"For the most part, it went well," Harry sighed. "The only downfall was when Ron said that it's bad enough that I'm a queer, but with _Draco Malfoy_?" He shook his head. "You would've thought I'd sold myself to Voldemort or something, the way Ron was acting. So I told him that it's been a good four years, and I thought that our friendship could survive worse things than this, but I was wrong. And I left."

"Want me to beat his arse?" Draco offered. Harry shook his head with a bitter smile.

"I think Fred and George got it covered," he responded. He leaned his tired body into Draco's embrace, closing his eyes.

"Are you tired?"

"I didn't sleep last night," Harry mumbled.

"At all?" Harry shook his head. "You need to sleep, love." Harry changed the subject.

"How did things go on your side?" he asked.

"Let's just say that I've lost a lot of friends, and that I might end up having to spend my nights in Sev's dungeons." Draco kissed Harry's forehead. "But it's worth it." 

They broke apart as the rest of their class came into the room. Some of the students shot dirty looks towards the couple, while others nodded their approval. Pansy Parkinson, a Slytherin who had had a crush on Draco for years, glared at Harry, clenching her fists.

"Harry," Hermione said as she came to the desk that she and Harry shared. Draco got up and let her sit down. "Thanks." She handed Harry two rolled up pieces of parchment. "You missed the post, so I took this from Hedwig for you."

"Thanks, 'Mione," Harry said, unrolling the first letter. It was from Sirius and Remus.

__

Harry,

Is something wrong? You have us pretty worried now. Send a reply quickly so we don't get too worked up, all right?

Love,

Snuffles & Remus

The next letter was, of course, from Draco. It was short, but to the point.

__

Harry,

I love you.

Always remember that.

Draco

Harry smiled and glanced at Draco, who did that sexy winking thing again. Several people rolled their eyes, but this time, Harry ignored them.

"Everyone sit down, and leave Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Potter alone," Snape announced as he entered the room, his robes billowing around him. "By the way, thank you for the entertainment this morning. That was just what I needed to see while I was eating my breakfast." Harry blushed, while some students laughed.

"It was just a joke," Draco whispered to Harry. "He's all right with it." Harry nodded, sighing with relief.


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

Several weeks later, on a Saturday in November, Harry and Draco were due to visit Sirius and Remus. Harry wasn't at breakfast, so Draco assumed that he'd slept in. Draco stayed in the Great Hall for a while, hanging out with Hermione, Ginny Weasley, and the twins, who were all quickly becoming his friends.

"I went in his dorm this morning, to see if he was awake," George told Draco. "He had his curtains drawn, so I peeked in, and he was sleeping like a baby. That's good, though, I guess, because Dean and Seamus say Harry hasn't been sleeping too well. Nightmares or something." 

"While he _does_ need the sleep, it's almost time for us to leave," Draco sighed. "Well, which of you wants to let me into your tower so I can wake him up?"

"I bet he'll enjoy that," Fred teased, grinning. "Me and George will come." 

The three boys headed up to Gryffindor Tower, then went into the fifth-year boys dormitory. Draco slowly pulled back the curtain around Harry's bed, then sat next to him on the mattress, while the twins waited in the doorway. Harry lay on his side, facing away from Draco, and his blankets were pulled up over his head. Draco gently shook his boyfriend, trying to wake him up, but nothing seemed to be working. Finally, Draco uncovered Harry and turned him over onto his back, then suddenly let out a strangled cry.

"Draco, what is it?" George asked as he and Fred ran over to the bed. The sight they were met with shocked them.

Harry's face was bloody and bruised. There were burns on his cheek, and one eye was swollen. There were finger-shaped bruises on his neck, as well as several cuts. Looking at the rest of him, the boys saw that blood was soaking through his shirt sleeve, from his arm, which was bent at an odd angle. He was no longer wearing his pants; he only wore boxer shorts, and his legs were also bruised and cut up. Gently turning the boy over, they saw that the back of his shirt was torn open, and there were numerous lacerations and welts on his back, but that wasn't what shocked them the most. What really did the trick was the blood that was soaking through the back of his shorts.

"Merlin, when I find out who the bloody hell did this to him..." Draco muttered as tears dripped down his cheeks. He held Harry's hand and smoothed his hair back from his forehead, trying to get him to wake up. "Come on, love, wake up and let me see those eyes..."

"All right, Fred, conjure up a stretcher, levitate Harry onto it, and take him up to the hospital wing as fast as you can. Draco, you're coming with me. We're going to speak with Dumbledore, and don't even argue with me because you need something to keep your mind off of killing people."

George and Draco went upstairs to Dumbledore's office, and they found the Headmaster, Snape, and McGonagall all in there. Seeing the state that Draco was in, Snape rushed to the boy, just barely catching him as he collapsed in a fit of tears. Snape lifted Draco up and took him to a sofa in the office, sitting with him and hugging him tightly as George explained what had happened.

"We took Draco to wake Harry up, figuring he'd just slept in, but when we got up there, he was a bloody mess. Cuts, bruises, burns all over. I think his arm was broken, as well. He only had his shorts and a shirt on. It looked like someone tried to strangle him; there were bruises that were shaped like fingers around his neck. We turned him over a bit, to see his back, and that was almost completely torn up, but then we, um... There was blood soaking through his shorts. I think...I think he was raped." George swallowed hard, to keep himself from crying. "I told Fred to conjure a stretcher and take Harry up to the hospital wing. He's probably there by now."

"Thank you, George, you've done a commendable job. I'll take over from here. Minerva, Severus, take Draco and George up to the hospital wing. I'll firecall Sirius and Remus and inform them of the situation."

Within a few hours, Harry had been stabilized and was sleeping soundly on a bed in the hospital wing. Draco sat in a chair on one side of the bed, holding one of Harry's hands. Sirius was in a chair on the other side of the bed, holding Harry's other hand, and Remus stood behind Sirius. McGonagall and the twins were no longer in the room, but Dumbledore and Snape were. Snape stood behind his godson, gently squeezing his shoulders as Madam Pomfrey ran down a summary of Harry's health.

"For the most part, his injuries looked worse than they were. The blood made it look like there were a lot more cuts and such, but there really weren't that many. His arm was broken, as were several ribs, and they must be left to heal without magic. The burns are healing as we speak. There will be scarring, but it will hardly be visible. He _was_ strangled, but there was no permanent damage done to anything in his throat. The lacerations on his back have been healed. The bruises and scars will have to be allowed to fade on their own."

"Was he..." Draco swallowed hard, forcing down the lump in his throat as he stroked Harry's cheek. "Was he raped?" Madam Pomfrey sighed softly.

"Technically, he was not raped, meaning that there was no penetration by another person's body. However, his body _was_ penetrated by some kind of foreign object, and we may have a key in finding out who did this to him." She held up a small, clear plastic bag with what looked like a splinter of wood in it. "This seems to be a piece of a wand. It was retracted from Mr. Potter's body. Find someone who has a broken wand, and you'll find a culprit." Draco let out a tiny sob, and Snape gently rubbed his shoulders.

"Were there any curses used, Poppy?" Dumbledore asked. The medi-witch nodded, gravely.

"Cruciatus," she said.

"I assume that there was more than one attacker," Dumbledore said, softly. "If we search the wands of people who may have been involved, one of them will have the Cruciatus Curse on it..." Shaking his head, he silently left the room. Madam Pomfrey went into her office, leaving Snape, Draco, Remus, and Sirius with Harry. Remus leaned over to Sirius and whispered something. Sirius nodded, solemnly, and Remus left. Sirius stood and bent over to kiss Harry's forehead. Then he followed Remus.

"Draco?" Snape said, softly. "Do you need anything?" Draco silently shook his head. "All right. I'll leave you alone with him, then. I'll be back up in a couple of hours." Snape left, and Draco moved to sit next to Harry on the bed, gently caressing his face.

"Whoever did this to you will pay, Harry," Draco said, softly. "I want to kill them for hurting you like this." He paused to wipe his eyes. "I need a sign that you're all right, love. Move your fingers or turn your head or...wake up. Come on, let me see your pretty green eyes. I'll do anything you want me to if you'll just wake up for me."

When he received no response, Draco sat back in the chair. He rested his elbows on his knees and placed his face in his hands, crying silently. After about ten minutes, he heard a weak voice.

"Don't cry for me... I'm not worth it..." Draco picked his head up and looked at Harry, who was awake and watching Draco.

"Merlin, Harry, you're _more_ than worth it," Draco murmured. He leaned over to kiss Harry tenderly. "You really scared me, you know." Harry glanced down at himself, taking in all his injuries. Then he looked back up at Draco and gave him a tired grin.

"It's not as bad as it looks," Harry mumbled, yawning. "I've survived worse."

"Harry, you were...well, not _tech-_nically, Pomfrey said, but...you were raped, Harry," Draco whispered. Harry stared at Draco, then spoke in a quiet, firm voice.

"I've survived worse." Draco's eyes widened, questioningly, and Harry nodded. The two were silent for a moment.

"Do you remember who it was, or what exactly happened?" Draco wondered, gently. Harry closed his eyes and thought for a moment.

"There were...four or five of them..." he mumbled. "From all the houses... I couldn't sleep, so I was sneaking up to the library, and they attacked me. Um...Someone from our year in Slytherin...a girl... Guy from Hufflepuff... A guy from Ravenclaw, I think... Fourth-year girl from Gryffindor... Ugh, my head hurts, I can't remember anymore..."

"Don't worry about it, love," Draco assured him. "I'll tell Dumbledore what you told me. He's trying to think of how we can figure out who did it, and what you told me will help." He changed the subject. "Sirius and Remus were here. I think they'll be back later on, but right now, it's just you and me." Harry gave a weak smile.

"I don't mind that at all," he said. Draco smiled, sadly, as Harry brought Draco's hand to his lips and kissed his fingers.

"This was my fault," Draco whispered, tears falling from his eyes again. "We should have just ignored the rumors and said nothing was going on. If we ignored it, then I wouldn't have almost lost you." Harry reached his hand up to Draco's cheek, and the blond boy turned his head to kiss Harry's palm, then just held on. "I don't ever want to lose you, Harry. I swear to Merlin, if I lose you, I'll kill myself."

"Please don't say that," Harry murmured, frowning. "Please, Draco, don't ever say that again..."

"Harry?" Draco said, softly, after a few moments of silence. "You told me that you were beaten last summer worse than any other time¼ How come there were no bruises or scars or anything? I mean, it's not that I don't believe you. I'm just curious." Harry sighed, then gave a weak smile.

"I never told you before because I don't like people knowing," he said, quietly. "It's another one of those things, one of those gifts, that most people don't have. Like the Parseltongue thing, and all that¼ I have somewhat of a healing touch. If I touch an open wound before it begins to close on its own, I can completely heal it, leaving no evidence that it was there before. About the bruises, I did have them. They were just in places that couldn't be seen."

"Can you show me how you do that healing thing?" Harry nodded.

"Not now, though. I don't think I have enough energy¼" Draco smiled a little.

"I learn something new about you every day," he teased. "Is there anything else you can do?"

"Oh, there's a lot of things I can do that you don't know about," Harry replied, smirking. "I'll let you in on it¼eventually." Draco shook his head, chuckling.

"You're something else, you know that?" Harry didn't reply, but yawned instead. "Go back to sleep, love. Now that I know you're all right, I can go talk to Dumbledore while you rest." Harry nodded and closed his eyes.


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

It was several days before Harry left the hospital wing and returned to class. His friends, Draco, Sirius, Remus, and the teachers decided that Harry and Draco were not to go anywhere alone, in case the students who attacked Harry decided to do it again. Teachers were keeping a special eye on them, and friends would walk with the boys to each of their classes. Everyone was on the look-out for any student who appeared suspicious, as they had yet to find out who Harry's assailants were. They were more concerned about making sure that Harry was well first.

The day Harry returned to classes, Draco and Hermione walked with him to Potions class a few minutes early. The boy was still very weak, and with the tight bandages around his chest, every breath he took caused him pain. He also had a cast on his broken arm, which would present problems in his classes. His teachers assured him that he would be given assistance if he needed it.

"Hello, Mr. Potter," Snape greeted him. Ever since Draco had spoken to Snape about him and Harry, and even moreso since the attack, the Potions master had been a lot nicer to Harry. "Miss Granger, Mr. Malfoy."

"Hi, Professor," Harry said. He handed Snape a few pieces of parchment, the assignments he'd given the boy for the days that he'd missed. "I'm pretty sure that's everything." Draco, Hermione, and Harry went back to their tables and put their books down, and Draco pulled his chair over to the other table.

"From now on, if we do potions in pairs, Sev's going to pair me and you together, I think," Draco told Harry, who nodded, then frowned and shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "What's wrong, love?" Harry shook his head, brushing the question off. "Harry, you don't have to act so brave. You can tell me if something's wrong."

"It just, um... It kind of hurts, when I sit," Harry mumbled, looking at his hands. Draco sighed and leaned in to rest his forehead against Harry's, placing his hand on the back of Harry's head.

"I wish there was something I could do to make you feel better," Draco whispered. 

Harry didn't reply. He just leaned into Draco's arms and rested his head on the blond's shoulder. Draco kissed Harry's forehead and ran his fingers through the boy's hair. Hermione gave Draco a sympathetic look.

"Harry, maybe you just aren't ready to be back in class," Draco suggested. "You're obviously still in a lot of pain, and--"

"I've missed too much already," Harry cut him off. "I can handle a little pain. This is nothing compared to some of the things I've dealt with." Draco sighed, shaking his head and leaning back in his chair. He folded his arms across his chest and stared at Harry.

"You just worry me, you know, Harry?" he said, softly.

"Well, I'm sorry. I'm not trying to make you worry. I'm just trying to get over it and get on with my life." He shook his head as the other students began to enter the room. "Just don't worry, all right? If I think something's really wrong, I'll tell you. Until then, don't worry about it." Draco nodded reluctantly and slid his chair back to his table.

"Copy down the recipe on the blackboard," Snape said loudly as the students sat in their seats. "Can anyone tell me what this is a recipe for?" Harry raised his hand a little. "Mr. Potter?"

"It's a Secret-Revealing Potion. When it's finished, you put a piece of parchment in it, and your biggest secret is written on the parchment."

"Five points to Gryffindor," Snape said, nodding. "You will make this potion with partners, and you will each test your potions with a piece of parchment. You will place the parchment in the potion, and then take it out and read it to yourselves. If what is written on the parchment is, in fact, your biggest secret, then obviously the potion has worked. You will not have to show the results to anyone other than yourself unless you want to. Of course, since it is supposed to be your biggest secret, you probably will not want to." He put the students into pairs, and Draco and Harry were together.

After an hour, the potions were ready to be tested. Just about everyone's potions were done correctly, or so they said. Crabbe and Goyle's were wrong, of course, as was Neville and Ron's. 

"Mr. Malfoy, it is your turn," Snape said, standing in front of Draco and Harry. Draco took a breath and placed his parchment in the potion for a few seconds, then withdrew it. He read it, and his face paled as he nodded his head.

"Are you all right?" Harry asked, resting a hand on Draco's shoulder. Draco nodded again, crumbling the parchment in his hand. 

Harry was the last to test his potion. He put the parchment in and took it out. When he looked at the parchment, his expression became that of confusion. He looked up at Snape.

"There's a line drawn on it, and that's all." He handed the parchment to Snape, who also looked at it.

"Do you know what that means, Mr. Potter?" Harry shook his head. "That means that you have a great many secrets, and all of them are very big secrets that take up your mind. The biggest secret cannot be distinguished." Snape stared at Harry for a moment, making Harry feel like the professor was reading his mind. He looked at the boy speculatively until Draco gave Snape a small kick in his leg.

"Sev, stop," Draco whispered loudly. "You're scaring him." Snape shook his head and headed for his office, speaking as he walked.

"Class dismissed. Mr. Crabbe, Mr. Goyle, Mr. Longbottom, and Mr. Weasley, you will all report here at five o'clock this evening to get your potions right."

Draco and Harry stood up and headed up the aisle to Snape's desk; Draco wanted to speak with his godfather. On the way up, Draco ran into Pansy Parkinson, who glared at him as she dropped her wand. She picked it up and left the room, as did everyone else except for the two boys. Draco took Harry's hand and began to walk again, but Harry didn't move. 

"Harry, what--" Draco started to say as he turned around. 

His eyes widened when he saw that Harry's face was pale and beads of sweat were forming on his forehead. The black-haired boy was shaky and breathing irregularly. Draco caught Harry after the boy's legs collapsed from under him.

"Severus, help!" Draco shouted as he carefully lowered Harry to the floor. Draco took his robe off and folded it up, placing it under Harry's head. Then he rested one hand on Harry's cheek, and the other on the boy's chest. "Harry, love, calm down. Try to breathe and tell me what's wrong. Severus, get your arse in here!" Snape rushed into the room from his office, and at the sight of the boys on the floor, he knelt down next to them.

"Pansy...wand...broken..." Harry barely whispered, closing his eyes as the pain in his chest grew.

"Pansy's wand was broken?" Snape asked. Harry nodded as Draco squeezed his hand. "Harry, I need you to tell me for sure: Was Pansy one of the students who attacked you?" Harry took a shaky breath, then winced in pain.

"Yes," he murmured. Snape looked at Draco.

"Try to keep him awake. I have something in my office that will calm him down." 

The professor ran to his office and soon returned with a bright blue potion. He pulled Harry up into a sitting position and helped him to drink from the vial. Within minutes, Harry was no longer shaking, and the pain in his chest eased, so that he was able to breathe properly.

"You're going to be the death of me," Draco sighed, shaking his head as he gently hugged Harry. "I'm starting to think you _enjoy_ scaring me."

"Oh, right..." Harry muttered. "I really enjoy not being able to breathe. I do that just so I can scare you..."

"I need to speak with Dumbledore about this," Snape said. "I'll take you two up to the hospital wing on my way."

"Draco?" Harry said a while later from his bed in the hospital wing.

"Yes, love?" Draco smoothed Harry's hair back from his forehead.

"Don't go and kill Pansy, all right?" Harry requested in a small voice. "I know you want to get revenge for me, but if you kill her, or anyone else, they'll make you leave me, and I don't want you to leave me. So don't kill anyone, please." Draco gave him a small smile.

"Anything for you," he said, softly. "Though it _will_ be tempting... Can I hurt them, at least? Maybe just a little hex here and there?" Harry shook his head. "All right."

After a few moments, Snape came in with Dumbledore, who sat in a chair by Harry's bed. The Headmaster gave Harry a warm smile, but the sparkle that was usually in his eyes had faded.

"How are you feeling, Harry?" 

"Fine," Harry replied, shrugging his shoulders. "Can I go back to class?" 

"Possibly tomorrow, child," Dumbledore told him. "I wanted to speak with you about a decision that I've made about the best way to find out who did this to you, aside from Miss Parkinson." He took a breath. "Harry, do you know what the Memorius Spell is?" Harry shook his head. "It is a spell that, when cast upon someone, allows that person's memories to be projected for others to see. If we use that spell on you, we may be able to see who attacked you." 

"Will you see things besides what happened that night?" Harry asked, frowning and fidgeting with his blanket.

"No, child, we can set a timeframe for the memories that are shown."

"But you'll see everything they did to me..." Harry mumbled. Dumbledore confirmed this. "I don't know if I want you to see."

"Harry," Dumbledore said, softly. "It's the easiest way." Harry sighed and nodded. "We will not have many people in the room when we perform the spell. Just myself, Professor Snape, Professor McGonagall, Sirius, and Remus. All right?" Harry nodded again. "When we find out who the students were, we will question them with Veritaserum. After that, they will most-likely be expelled and turned over to the Ministry for further punishment."

"When are you..." Harry's words trailed to an end, but Dumbledore knew what he was asking.

"Tonight. Professor Snape will bring you up to my office. I've already asked Sirius and Remus to come. Before we do the spell, I'll explain to you what will happen, all right?" Harry nodded.


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

"All right, Harry, just relax," Dumbledore said, softly, that night. 

Everyone who was going to witness the memory was sitting in the Headmaster's office. Harry sat on the sofa between Sirius and Remus, who each held one of his hands.

"Now, when I say the incantation, you will begin to feel tired, and you will soon slip into a deep slumber. Hopefully, it shouldn't take _too_ long, and you will wake up as soon as we are finished. You will not witness the memory yourself, so do not worry about that. When you wake up, you will be taken back to the hospital wing until you regain your strength."

"All right," Harry said, quietly. "Go ahead. Just get it over with." Dumbledore nodded and held his wand up.

"_Memorius Revealus_!" he bellowed. 

Within seconds, the office room turned into the hall by the library. Harry was quickly walking down the hall, glancing around to make sure nobody caught him, when suddenly five people appeared from nowhere and grabbed him. One girl put a silencing spell on Harry, so that he couldn't make any noise. The students, three girls and two boys, dragged Harry into an empty room and threw him against the wall. They each took turns beating him.

"Bloody queer!" a girl shouted, kicking Harry in his stomach, his back, his face, and his ribs. 

"It's disgusting, unnatural," a boy said in a low voice. He used a Banishing Charm to throw Harry across the room. He hit a wall and then dropped to a table, shattering bottles of potions. The contents of the bottles spilled on Harry, causing burns to appear. The next girl went up to Harry and pointed her wand at him.

"_Crucio_," she said, forcefully. Harry's body began to twitch and writhe in pain, causing him to fall from the table to the floor. Blood was appearing all over his body, and the next boy came to Harry. He leaned over and lifted Harry up by his neck, squeezing tightly with his fingers. Harry gasped for air, his eyes wide as the boy pressed against his windpipe.

"Justin, that's enough. He's mine now."

The last girl seemed to be the leader of the whole attack. She had a smirk on her face as she walked up to Harry, who had collapsed on the floor. She pulled a whip from her robes and began to hit Harry with it as hard as she could. The force from the whip ripped his shirt, and large welts began to appear. After a few minutes, she got bored with the whip and knelt down by Harry. She removed her wand from her robes, then ripped Harry's pants off and pulled his shorts down. There were already several scars on his backside.

"You vile, good-for-nothing faggot," the girl whispered, harshly. "You deserve to die. All of your kind deserves to die." 

She took her wand and plunged it inside of Harry, repeatedly thrusting it until he had passed out from the pain. She then removed her wand, not noticing that it was slightly splintered at the end, and cleaned the blood off with Harry's shirt. Then she and the others began to leave, each of them kicking Harry one more time as they passed him. 

"_Retournus Normalus_," someone said as they left. Except for Harry, everything in the room was put back to normal. 

Suddenly, everything went blank for a moment. Then Harry appeared, limping through the halls and heading for his Tower. One arm hung to his side, and the other was wrapped around his torso. He collapsed several times on the way, but he always picked himself right back up and continued on his journey. It took a while, but he was soon in his dorm. He climbed into his bed and drew the curtains, then pulled his blanket over his head. Then he blacked out.

The memory was over. Dumbledore's office reappeared. Harry awoke, though he was disoriented as he lay across Sirius and Remus's laps. Both men had tears streaming down their faces, and Sirius hugged Harry tightly. McGonagall was crying as well, and Dumbledore had a pained, sad look on his face. Snape just sat in his chair, several shades paler than normal and looking like he was going to be sick as he stared at the floor.

"Wh-who..." Harry mumbled, sleepily. Dumbledore took a breath.

"Pansy Parkinson, Justin Finch-Fletchley, Terry Boot, Christina Riley, and Cho Chang." He stood up. "Sirius, Remus, if you would like a few minutes alone with Harry before Severus takes him to the hospital wing, go right ahead." The professors left the room, and Sirius and Remus were left with Harry.

"Great Merlin, Harry... I had no idea..." Sirius murmured, hugging his godson tightly.

"Everything's going to be fine now, Harry," Remus assured him, softly. He squeezed Harry's hand. "We know who did it, and they're going to be punished." Harry nodded, though he still seemed a little disoriented.

"Snape's going to take you to the hospital wing now, all right, kiddo?" Sirius told him. "We'll come and see you soon; maybe tomorrow."

"All right..."

Snape then came in and scooped Harry's weak body up in his arms. He carried the boy to the hospital wing, where Draco was waiting.

"Don't worry, he's just tired," Snape assured Draco, lowering Harry to the bed. He immediately fell asleep.

"You look like you're going to be sick," Draco commented. "Was it--" Snape nodded.

"It was really bad, Draco," he said, softly. "But it had to be done. We know who did it. We'll tell you tomorrow; we're going to question them with Veritaserum." Draco nodded, then looked at Harry.

"Can I stay up here with him?"

"No, you're coming downstairs," Snape said. "He'll be sleeping all night, and you need some sleep yourself. Don't worry; he's extremely safe in here. There are wards set on the door, and Poppy will be in here."

"Fine," Draco sighed, reluctantly.


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

"Hello, love," Draco said, softly, as he entered the hospital wing that afternoon. Harry lay on his side on the bed, watching Draco, who carried something behind his back.

"You got something for me," Harry guessed with a tired grin.

"Now, what makes you think it's for _you_?" Draco teased, sitting next to Harry. He brought his hand around and gave his boyfriend a red rose. "Yes, it's for you." Harry accepted the rose and hugged Draco, then placed the flower on the bedside table. "How are you feeling?"

"Tired," Harry replied, yawning. "Not in as much pain¼" Draco gently touched Harry's cheek. "Did they tell you what's going on?"

"They didn't tell me who it was, and they said not to let you tell me, either. They're questioning them with Veritaserum right now, I think, and as soon as it's confirmed, Dumbledore will come in here to talk to us."

"All right," Harry sighed.

"So what do you want to do while we wait?" Draco wondered. Harry shrugged his shoulders before his eyes suddenly brightened.

"I told you about that whole healing thing, and I've been wanting to show you," he said. "Want to see?"

"Are you sure you have enough energy?" Draco asked, concerned. Harry nodded. "All right, then, if you're sure. So what are you going to do?" Harry looked down at his arms and legs, sighing, then glanced around the room.

"Can you grab that knife right there?" he asked, pointing at a knife on a table. Cautiously, Draco handed it to him. His eyes widened when Harry bit his lip and sliced his upper arm, right above his cast.

"What the-" 

"Just watch," Harry cut him off, wincing a little. He pressed his hand against the wound and closed his eyes, feeling his magical energy flowing through him. After a moment, he removed his hand, and there was no evidence that there had been any kind of cut.

"That's bloody amazing, but if you ever do that again¼" Draco sighed, shaking his head. "I was right. You love to scare me." Harry took Draco's hand and brought it to his lips, kissing it lightly.

"I'm sorry," he said, softly, frowning as he realized how pale Draco had become. He wrapped his arms around the blond boy. "Don't worry, I'm fine. I wouldn't have done that if I thought there was any chance of it really hurting me."

"I know, but you should have warned me," Draco murmured. He changed the subject. "What kinds of other things can you do?"

"Um¼I'm telepathic sometimes. I can read people's thoughts, and I can talk to them through their minds. I haven't really taken the time to work on that one."

"What am I thinking now?" Draco asked, smiling slyly. Harry closed his eyes and began to concentrate, then grinned and leaned up to whisper in his ear as the door to the infirmary opened. Draco's face turned red, and Sirius and Remus entered the room; Sirius in his Animagus form. He transformed and laughed when he saw Draco's face.

"Harry, what did you say to that boy?" Remus wondered, smirking.

"Probably close to the same thing you said to Sirius that made him blush that day of my first visit." Sirius's eyes narrowed.

"I _hope_ you didn't say anything like that," he said, sternly. "Need I remind you that you are both still only fifteen?" Harry just waved him off, grinning.

"Anyway, hi, Sirius, hi, Remus! It's good to see you!" Draco chuckled at Harry's tone. Sirius smiled, shaking his head, and leaned over to give his godson a hug.

"Hey, kiddo, how are you doing?"

"Good," Harry replied as Snape and Dumbledore came in. "Wow, it's a party." Dumbledore pulled a chair up to the bed and sat down. "Hello, Professor, and before you ask, I feel fine." Dumbledore smiled, tiredly.

"That's good to hear, my boy," he said. "Now, onto business. Draco, the attackers we saw in Harry's memory were Pansy Parkinson, Justin Finch-Fletchley, Terry Boot, Christina Riley, and Cho Chang. All of them, except for Miss Chang, have been expelled. I have contacted the Ministry, and they are handling things now."

"Why wasn't Cho expelled?" Draco asked with anger in his eyes. "If she was--" Dumbledore held a hand up to silence him.

"She couldn't answer any of our questions, so we performed some tests. The results showed that she had been under the Imperius Curse. Up until today, she had no idea that she'd attacked Harry."

"So it's over?" Harry asked, hopefully. "I don't have to worry about them doing anything else to me or Draco now?" Dumbledore gave a soft sigh and rested a hand on Harry's shoulder.

"Harry, even if the students who attacked you are gone, there may still be others who want to harm you. You have to admit that your relationship with Draco _is_ an unusual one, and there are a lot of people who won't approve of it. Now, I will protect you boys to the best of my ability, but I can't promise that people won't try to hurt you again." Harry nodded.

"I understand." Dumbledore smiled warmly at him, squeezing his shoulder.

"Good. Now, if I'm not mistaken, your godfather has some news for you." Sirius's eyes sparkled as Harry looked at him.

"My name's been cleared, thanks to Remus and some other friends of ours," Sirius told Harry. "It won't be reported to the public until tomorrow, but I can now say that I am a free man." Harry's eyes widened, and within half a second, he'd launched himself into his godfather's arms, hugging him tightly. 

"That's so great, Sirius!" Harry exclaimed. Sirius just laughed and returned the hug.


	14. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

Two weeks before Christmas, Harry received a letter from Sirius at breakfast. He and Draco sat at a mostly empty end of the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall. Hermione, Fred, George, Lee, and Ginny sat with them. Harry unrolled the letter and began to read. Draco rested his chin on Harry's shoulder, also reading.

__

Harry,

How would you like to spend your Christmas vacation with us? We spoke to Severus, and he said that Draco could spend part of the break here as well, so that you two can have a nice Christmas together. Of course, Severus wants to spend Christmas Day with Draco, but the rest of the time, he's welcome to stay here.

More good news: Remus and I got married. We went to the Ministry, said our vows, and we're married now! Isn't that great?

Write back about Christmas, all right? See you soon!

Love,

Sirius

"I didn't know same-sex marriages were allowed in the wizard world," Harry commented.

"Why wouldn't they be?" Ginny asked, confused. Harry chuckled.

"They don't allow it in the Muggle world. Most places don't, anyway."

After a few minutes, Harry and Draco went down to Snape's dungeons, to talk alone in Draco's room. They both lay on the bed, on their sides, facing one another.

"So what do you think?" Harry asked. "Want to spend Christmas break with the newlyweds?"

"I don't know," Draco replied, smirking. "You know what newlyweds do a lot of the time, and I'm sure those two can get pretty loud. If I hear them, I might become envious because I can't do those things with you yet."

"Well, what if..." Harry murmured, tracing a finger along Draco's jaw, then down his neck, and rested his hand on the blond boy's chest before leaning in to kiss him. "What if I wanted to do those things, too?" 

"Then I'd say we're both in luck," Draco whispered, his lips only an inch away from Harry's. He gently nudged Harry's lips open, and their tongues began to wrestle. Draco pulled away for a moment. "Because I've been wondering for a long time now what you're like in bed, love."

"One night during the break," Harry said, softly, as he pulled Draco closer, "I'll ask Sirius and Remus to leave the house, and it'll be just you and me, able to do whatever we want to."

"Sounds good to me," Draco said before plunging his tongue into Harry's mouth once more.

~~~

On Harry's first night of vacation at Sirius and Remus's house, Harry received a letter. Draco's eagle owl flew in through the window at dinner and gave Harry a rolled up piece of parchment. Harry patted the owl's head and unrolled the letter.

__

Dearest Harry,

I'm afraid I won't be able to come to the house for Christmas. I'm sick with something, stuck in the infirmary, and Sev and Madam Pomfrey reckon I won't be better by the time holiday's over. But don't even think about coming to see me, because I'm contagious, and I don't want you getting sick. I'm sorry, love.

All my love,

Draco

Harry sighed, closing his eyes. He took deep breaths, then stood up from the dinner table, leaving the room. He went into the living room, then suddenly kicked the wall.

"Damn it!" he shouted before sinking to the floor and leaning against the wall. He ran his fingers through his hair as Sirius and Remus ran out.

"What's wrong, Harry?" Remus asked, worriedly. Sirius sat next to Harry, resting a hand on the boy's back. Harry just leaned over and laid his head on his godfather's shoulder, sniffling.

"I had everything planned... A whole special night, just for me and Draco." He reached up to wipe his eyes. "I bought everything: stuff to make dinner, candles, flowers, _everything_. But he can't come here now because he's sick, and they say he won't be better by the time vacation's over. Not only that, I can't even _visit_ him because he's contagious..."

"Oh, Harry," Sirius said, softly, as he embraced his godson. "That's terrible."

"I don't want to sound ungrateful or anything because I know this is my first Christmas with you... But it was supposed to be my first Christmas with Draco, too."

"It's all right, kiddo, we understand that you're upset." Sirius kissed the side of Harry's head. "Why don't you go up to your room and write back to him?"

"I will tomorrow," Harry sighed. "I'm going to bed..." With that, he went upstairs to his bedroom and lay down on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. 

__

Why did he have to get sick? he thought. _Everything's ruined now; I had the perfect night planned, and now it's not going to happen. _He sighed, shaking his head. _What the hell am I thinking? It's not his fault he got sick. He couldn't help it, and now I'm being so selfish. I should be wondering if he's okay, not complaining about my plan being messed up. _

Getting an idea, Harry closed his eyes and began to concentrate, trying to speak to Draco through his mind.

__

-Draco, can you hear me?

It took a moment or two, but Draco soon replied.

__

-Yes, love, I can hear you. Did you get my letter?

-Yeah. How are you feeling? What do you have?

-I'm not feeling too great. My whole body aches, and I keep getting sick... We don't know what I have, probably the flu. Nobody's allowed anywhere near me except Severus and Madam Pomfrey.

-I hope you feel better soon. I miss you already.

-And I, you, my love... I'm sorry I can't come for Christmas.

-Don't worry about it. Just get yourself better. We'll worry about having a Christmas together when you're not sick.

-I'm looking forward to it¼ What are you doing now?

Harry paused and glanced around the room. He still lay flat on his back on the bed, but he realized that, for some reason, his muscles were aching.

__

-Laying on my bed, staring up at the ceiling. I think I might go and take a bath or something, my muscles are sore.

-Oh, and you just had to tell me that, didn't you? You know where my mind's going now. Harry laughed._ Why are your muscles sore?_

-I don't know. They just are, I suppose. No special reason that I can think of.

-All right, well, you go take your bath. I'm going to go get sick again.

-Feel better. I love you.

-I love you, too.

Harry went into his bathroom and ran a tub of warm water. He removed his clothes and stepped into the water, sitting and sinking down until only his head was above the surface. He hissed a little as the water stung the few wounds that were still healing, then leaned his head back on the edge of the tub, closing his eyes and letting the water soak away his aches and pains.


	15. Chapter 15

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

"Wake up, kiddo!" Sirius's voice was an unpleasant awakening for Harry, and he let his godfather know this by throwing a pillow at him. "Hey, that wasn't very nice! Come on, Harry, it's Christmas! Don't you want to open your presents?"

"What time is it?" Harry wondered, sitting up. He moaned as a wave of nausea came over him, and he lay back down. Sirius was instantly by his side.

"What's the matter?" the older man asked, concern written on his face. He placed a hand on Harry's forehead. "You have a fever."

"Oh, I think I'm going to be sick..." Harry groaned. Sirius snatched up a garbage can from the floor and held it up in front of Harry, just in time.

"I'll leave this right by the bed for you, kiddo," Sirius said, softly, after Harry had finished emptying his stomach. "I'm going to go downstairs and see if we have anything to make you feel better, and in a while, Remus and I will bring your presents upstairs." He went downstairs and met Remus in the kitchen.

"Something wrong, Siri?" Remus wondered, seeing the worry that was etched on his husband's face as Sirius rummaged through cupboards.

"Do we have any of that Anti-Nausea Potion?" Sirius asked. "Harry's sick."

"Poor kid," Remus murmured. "No, we don't. Severus probably has some; I'll go ask." He went to the fireplace and called up Snape. "Hey, Severus, Happy Christmas. How's Draco?"

"He's feeling better," Snape responded. "He's out of the infirmary now, and we were just about to start opening up our presents."

"I'm sorry to interrupt," Remus apologized. "But do you have any Anti-Nausea Potion? Harry's sick now." Snape chuckled.

"And we thought that in keeping the two of them apart, Draco wouldn't get Harry sick... Yes, I have some of the potion. I'll come through with it in a few minutes."

Sure enough, Snape came through the Floo within minutes, and he handed Remus a phial of blue potion. He also handed over a red rose.

"Draco wants you to give that to Harry." Remus nodded.

"Will do. Thanks, Severus." Snape went back through the Floo, and Sirius and Remus went back upstairs to Harry's room. They found him in his bathroom, leaning over the toilet.

"Harry, I left the garbage can in there so you wouldn't have to get out of bed and come in here," Sirius told him. Harry picked his head up and glared at him.

"It's full." Remus sat next to Harry on the floor and helped him to drink the potion. 

"Anti-Nausea," Remus told him. "Severus brought it through the Floo, as well as a rose from Draco."

"How is he?" Harry mumbled, leaning against Remus's side.

"He's doing better. He's out of the infirmary. Now come on, let's get you back to bed. Sirius, darling, empty the garbage can, will you?" Sirius made a face, but did as he was asked, while Remus carried Harry back to bed and tucked him in under the blankets. "Harry, do you want us to bring all the presents up here?" Harry shook his head.

"I want to go downstairs..." he murmured. 

"All right, then. Let's go downstairs." Remus lifted Harry up again and carried him to the living room. He lowered the boy to the couch, placing pillows under his head and covering him with a light blanket. Then he got Harry a glass of water, and Harry began to sip at it.

"Is it time for presents now?" Sirius wondered as he came downstairs. He sat on the floor by the pile of gifts that were under a small Christmas tree. "Here's one for Harry... One for Remus... One for Harry... Where are the important ones? You know, the ones that say 'Sirius' on them?" Remus laughed and tossed a present to him, then handed one to Harry, who slowly began to unwrap it.

"Mm, thanks..." Harry mumbled, sleepily, as he pulled out a set of pajamas. They had broomsticks and snitches all over them. Sirius handed him another present; this one was in oddly-shaped wrapping, and it turned out to be a teddy bear. 

"You told me once that you've never had a teddy bear," Sirius explained. "And I think that all kids should have at least one teddy bear throughout their lives. You can hug that when you're sleeping and Draco's not around." Harry smiled weakly at the glint in his godfather's eye, then hugged the bear tightly. 

After half an hour, the presents were all opened. Remus went into the kitchen for a moment, while Sirius stayed and talked to Harry.

"We have two presents left for you, kiddo," he said as Remus came back in, cradling something black in his arms. "The first one is this." The 'something black' turned out to be a kitten, and Remus handed it over to Harry, who smiled and stroked the cat's fur. "And the other one... Well, since you're already going to be living with us, um..." Sirius hesitated, so Remus took over.

"Harry, would it be all right with you if Sirius and I adopted you?" he asked. "We love you and want to give you a real family, but we wanted to ask you first." Harry pondered this for a moment, then slowly nodded his head.

"I'd like that," he agreed. He glanced between Sirius and Remus. "But which one of you do I call 'Dad'?" The two older wizards laughed and gently hugged the boy.


	16. Chapter 16

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

The first day back to school, Harry had been told to go to Snape's quarters. He reached the portal and spoke the password he'd been given, then went inside and found Draco sitting on the sofa. Harry sat down with his boyfriend and gave him a hug.

"I missed you," they both said, softly, before smiling.

"How was your Christmas?" Draco wondered. "I hear I made you sick, even though you were nowhere near me?" 

"That's what they're saying," Harry chuckled. "But I'm fine now, so... Anyway, Christmas was good. I got a kitten. A little black kitten, I named her Peachy. Don't ask why; I just called her that for some reason, and she seemed to like it. She's at the house right now. Oh, and Sirius and Remus adopted me." Draco snorted.

"Which one do you call 'Dad'?" 

"That's the same thing I asked them. Then they got into an argument about who was the man in the relationship and stuff... It was pretty funny." 

Draco laughed a little, but it didn't seem to reach his eyes. His normally sparkling grey eyes were dull and sad. Harry turned to face Draco, resting a hand on his cheek.

"Something wrong?" Draco sighed and laid his head on Harry's shoulder, wrapping his arms around Harry's waist.

"Severus met this woman last summer. They've been corresponding by owl, meeting up on the weekends. They got married last week. Not only that, but she's pregnant as well. Their baby's due at the end of July."

"That's good, though, isn't it?"

"Yeah, it is, but that's not all... Severus wants to adopt me. I'm not sure if I want him to."

"Why not?" Harry wondered, stroking Draco's hair.

"I could make up so many excuses," Draco murmured. "It would be difficult having my father as a teacher... He'd regret it after a week... He won't know what he's getting himself into... But none of those excuses are the real reason."

"What's the real reason?" Harry asked, softly.

"I'm scared he'll turn out like Lucius," Draco whispered. "I'm scared that if I do something he doesn't like, he'll hurt me. If I'm not as perfect as he wants me to be, he'll hurt me. I'm scared that he'll stop acting like he cares..."

"He loves you," Harry told Draco. "It's so obvious that he loves you. I see the two of you together, and it's times like those when I see more emotion out of him than I've seen in the past five years that I've known him. You don't have to worry about him turning out like Lucius because Lucius was a cruel, heartless bastard. Severus is the exact opposite. Ever since you were put in his custody, he's been acting as a father-figure towards you. His adopting you would only make that official. Nothing else would really change." Draco sighed, tightening his arms around Harry's waist.

"You're right, as always."

"Of course I am," Harry replied, smiling. He kissed Draco's forehead. "Now. Tell me about his new wife." Draco lay down with his head in Harry's lap, and he actually smiled.

"Her name is Katie, and she's from Ireland. She's really nice, very friendly. She's got green eyes and red hair, and this great accent. I love to hear her talk, just so I can hear that accent. Oh, and the Defense teacher had some big family emergency and had to resign. Katie's taking over the class. She told me about some plans that she has for the class, and she wants to teach us how to duel properly."

"As long as she's not like Lockhart, I don't think I'll have a problem with that."

"She's not like that git, believe me," Draco laughed. "Anyway, she'll be living here with me and Sev; they should be here in an hour or so." He sighed, smiling. "Wow... I'm going to have a new father, a new mother, and in seven months, I'll have a baby brother or sister. This is strange."

"Not nearly as strange as having a new father and a new father," Harry retorted, grinning. He changed the subject. "So you and me, we still need to have _our_ Christmas. How about Saturday night? I already got permission to have the house all to us." Draco nodded his agreement as he brought Harry's fingers to his lips, kissing them one by one.

"What do you have planned for us?" he wondered, softly. "And don't say you don't, because I know you do."

"I have a lot planned for us," Harry replied, smirking. "You'll just have to wait until Saturday night to find out. But I can guarantee that it will be well-worth the wait."

"Mm, so you're just going to leave me to my imagination while I wait? Not a good idea, love. I'll think of so many things I'd want to do, so many that we'll have to set aside another night or two, just so we can do everything."

"I don't mind that one bit," Harry assured him before leaning over and capturing Draco's lips with his own. When they broke apart, Harry said, "Come on. I reckon everyone's arrived from the train, and I'd like to visit them a bit." 

Hand in hand, the two walked up to the Great Hall, where the students who'd just returned from their holidays were gathered. After searching for a few moments, they found the Weasleys (minus Ron) and Hermione sitting at a table, and sat down with them.

"Hey, you two, how was your Christmas?" Fred wondered, smirking. "You behaved yourselves, didn't you?"

"Of course we did, considering we spent the whole vacation apart," Harry replied. "Draco was sick nearly the entire time, and then I got sick as well, so we weren't allowed near each other. And my Christmas was good, thank you."

"Why do you both look so overly-happy?" George asked, laughing. "What happened over break?"

"A lot, and we plan to tell you all about it," Draco responded. "For one thing, we have a new Defense teacher this term. Her name is Katie _Snape_, she's from Ireland. She and Severus have been...involved since last summer, and they got married last week, though you're not to say anything to anyone else yet. Dumbledore's going to announce it tonight. For another thing, Katie is pregnant. And finally, Severus is going to adopt me. So I'm getting new parents, and by the end of July, I'll have a baby brother or sister."

"Wow, that's great, Draco!" Hermione exclaimed.

"What about you, Harry?" Ginny asked. 

"My Christmas wasn't nearly as eventful as Draco's," Harry said. "I got a kitten, and Sirius and Remus adopted me."

"Who do you call 'Dad'?" Fred and George asked in unison, causing Harry and Draco to look at each other and burst out laughing.

"I asked them the same thing, and then Draco asked _me_ the same thing this morning," Harry chuckled. "Eh, I think I'll call Sirius 'Dad' and Remus 'Daddy.' And no, I'm not too old to call him 'Daddy.' I never got to call anyone that before."

"Aw, I think it's cute," Draco told him, kissing the tip of his nose.

"Well, we're happy for you two," Hermione told them, and she hugged them.

"Hey, Harry, we have a Quidditch match on Friday," Fred reminded him. "Against Ravenclaw. If you can come, we're having practice every day this week, starting tomorrow. Four o'clock." Harry nodded.

"All right. I got a new broom I wanted to try out."

"What kind?" George wondered.

"Firebolt 3000," Harry said, grinning as Fred, George, and Draco gaped at him.

"You always get the best brooms," Fred sighed, good-naturedly. "Oh, well. You'd better put it to good use at the match."

"I will," Harry promised. Suddenly, Severus came up behind them. 

"Draco, you don't mind if I put some of Katie's stuff in your room, do you?" he asked. "Just until I get another room cleared out."

"That's fine," Draco agreed. 

"Do you want to come down and help put some things away? There's a lot of stuff down there; she _is_ a woman, after all. No offense, Miss Granger, Miss Weasley."

"None taken," Hermione laughed.

"Yeah, I'll help," Draco said.

"Can I help, too?" Harry asked. "I want to meet her!" Severus nodded, and Harry and Draco went with him downstairs.

"Hi, Katie!" Draco called as he and Harry came through the portal. He hugged the red-haired woman who had just come down the hall. Then he stood back and took Harry's hand. "This is Harry."

"Hello, Harry," Katie greeted him, smiling as she shook his hand. "It's a pleasure meeting you. Draco told me so much about you!"

"All good things, I hope." It was more of a question than a statement as Harry looked at Draco.

"All good things," Draco promised, grinning. "Don't worry, I haven't told her that you snore, or that you--" He was stopped when Harry's hand was clamped over his mouth.

"I do _not_ snore!" Harry protested.

"Hey, Sev?" Draco said after they'd gotten all of Katie's luggage put away in the bedrooms. The four of them now sat around the living room. "Did you know Sirius and Remus adopted Harry?"

"Yes, I did. Remus mentioned it to me. And don't worry, Harry, I won't ask you which of them you're going to call 'Dad.'" Harry grinned, and they were all quiet for a few moments.

"Hey, Sev?" Draco said again. "Did you know I decided that I'd like it if you adopted me?" 

"No, Draco, I didn't know that," Severus said as a small smile appeared on his face. "But it's good to know. Thank you." Draco grinned and hugged him. Severus looked a little surprised, but he returned the hug.

"Draco," Harry said, softly, after a few minutes. "I think I'm going to try and take a nap before the feast tonight."

"Feeling all right?" Draco asked, concerned. Harry nodded.

"Still tired," he explained. "I'll see you later." He gave Draco a kiss on his cheek, then stood up.

"You're still not allowed to go anywhere alone," Severus said before Harry could leave. "Kate, would you escort Harry up to his tower? I need to speak with Draco."

"Of course, dear," Katie agreed, smiling at Harry. The two headed upstairs. "So Harry, how did you and Draco come to be?"

"We used to be enemies, for four years, but it turned out that he was playing the role that was expected of him by his 'father,'" Harry explained. "We came to school this year, and after a few weeks, he stopped me from jumping from the Astronomy Tower. After about a week, he sent me a yellow rose with red edges, which meant he was falling in love with me, and I realized I was falling in love with him as well."

"That's sweet," Katie commented, softly. "May I ask why you were going to--"

"My aunt and uncle beat me," Harry sighed, bitterly. "I've been in their custody since my mum and dad died, and they hate magic. When I got to school, I thought I was all right, but then I snapped." By then, they'd reached the portrait of the Fat Lady. "Thank you for coming with me. It was nice meeting you."

"Likewise," Katie agreed. "I'll see you at dinner, then, Harry." Harry nodded, then spoke the password and entered the Gryffindor common room. A couple students were sitting around the room, talking and playing chess.

"Hey, Fred, George," Harry said. The twins looked up. "Can you make sure I'm awake in time for dinner?"

"All right, Harry," Fred agreed. 

"You okay, mate?" George wondered. Harry nodded.

"Just going to take a nap. Thanks." He went up to his dorm, climbed into bed, and immediately fell asleep.


	17. Chapter 17

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

"Welcome back, students!" Dumbledore announced at the feast that evening. "I hope you've all had a good holiday. I have several announcements before we feast. First, Professor Stephens was called away for a family emergency, and therefore, will not return for this term. However, we have a new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. Her name is Katie Snape, and she is the new wife of your Potions Master. The Snapes are also expecting their first child-- Correction: their _second_ child, as they are adopting Mr. Draco Malfoy as their first. Will you all please give them a round of applause in congratulations?" The students clapped their hands, and then Dumbledore made the food appear on the tables.

"I'm so happy for you, Draco," Hermione said. "You, too, Harry. You both deserve to be happy." She, Ginny, the twins, Draco, and Harry were sitting at the end of the Gryffindor table again, away from everyone else. At Hermione's words, Draco just smiled.

"Thanks, 'Mione," Harry replied, holding Draco's hand under the table.

"How did you sleep, love?" Draco asked a while later, his voice soft as he rested his chin on Harry's shoulder.

"Not great," Harry responded. Draco sighed, squeezing Harry's knee.

"You haven't been sleeping well for weeks. Maybe you should--" Harry covered Draco's mouth with his hand and stared at him.

"We'll discuss this _later_," Harry said, firmly.

"All right, but maybe Severus could give you a Dreamless Sleep Potion tonight," Draco said, quietly, so that the others wouldn't hear. Harry shook his head.

"It doesn't help," he mumbled.

"Please, Harry, just come downstairs with me, and we'll ask if he can do anything." Harry glared at the pleading look in his boyfriend's eyes. 

"I hate it when you do that, you know."

"But it gets you every time," Draco replied, smiling. "Come on. I think Sev and Katie already went down there." Sighing and shaking his head, Harry went downstairs with Draco. Once there, they found Severus and Katie cuddling on the sofa. They looked up when they heard the boys come in.

"Do you two need something?" Severus asked.

"Harry hasn't been sleeping well the past several weeks," Draco explained. "He's been having nightmares, and Dreamless Sleep Potions don't work. Do you have any ideas, or anything he could take?" 

"All I can think of to _really_ put him to sleep is the Draught of Living Death," Severus responded after a moment. "And there's no way that I'm going to give that to a fifteen-year-old, especially one who has class in the morning. I'm sorry, Harry." Harry just nodded his understanding. 

"That's all right," he said, quietly. "I didn't think anything could help, anyway. I've pretty much given up on being able to sleep for a while."

"Sweetheart, maybe if you tell us a little about your nightmares, then we could help you out," Katie suggested. Harry's eyes widened a little, and he quickly shook his head.

"No, I can't--" he hesitated. He took a breath. "I mean, I don't want to be a bother. I'm just going to go upstairs. Thanks." 

He turned to leave, but Draco grabbed him by his arm. Harry slowly turned around, his face pale as his hands trembled. Draco, Katie, and Severus all exchanged glances. Katie cautiously came up to Harry and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder.

"Harry, you look like you're going to faint," she said, softly. "I must insist that you stay down here tonight." Severus and Draco agreed.

"Come on, love," Draco murmured, taking Harry's hand. He led the raven-haired boy into the guest bedroom, where Draco slept. "You sleep in here." Harry lay down on the bed, knowing that protesting was of no use. Draco sat next to him, gently rubbing his back. "What's wrong with you, Harry? Something's wrong, I can tell. You're acting so...different." Harry didn't reply. "Fine, if you won't tell me..." Draco stood up and was about to leave, but Harry reached out to grab his hand.

"Stay with me," he whispered, tears welling up in his eyes. Draco sighed and lay down with Harry, wrapping his arms around the other boy. Harry nestled his face in Draco's chest, letting a few tears escape.

"I'm just worried about you, love," Draco said, softly. "I don't like seeing you upset. I want to help you, but if I don't know what's wrong, then I don't know what to do. What do I do to help you, Harry?"

"Just stay with me," Harry requested. "And promise you'll never hurt me..." Draco gasped.

"Merlin, Harry, is that what you're acting so weird about?" he asked, hugging Harry tightly. "You're scared that I'm going to hurt you? I'll never hurt you. I don't know what would make you think about that, but I love you. I love you more than anything, Harry." Harry only tightened his grip around Draco's waist. "Go to sleep, love. I'll stay right here with you; I won't go anywhere, _ever_."


	18. Chapter 18

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

"Hello, everyone!" Katie greeted her fifth-year Slytherin-Gryffindor Defense class the next day. "My name is Katie Snape, but so that there is no confusion, I'd like for you all to call me 'Katie.' For today's class, there will be no lessons. I'd like to go around the room and have each of you tell me your names and something about yourselves. You can also take this time to ask me any questions you may have. I can't guarantee that I'll answer them, but you can ask nonetheless." She pointed at Ron. "You first."

"Ron Weasley," he said, lazily. "I like Quidditch. You're really cheerful; why would someone like you marry someone like Professor Snape?"

"Things aren't always as they seem, Ron," Katie said, firmly. "People aren't, either." She went through several other students, then continued with Draco, who grinned and waved at her.

"Hi, Mum, I'm Draco, and you know I'm not going to be able to call you 'Katie.' It's just too weird."

"Hi, Draco. You know I'm not going to treat you any different than anyone else just because we're family." Katie smirked, and Draco just sighed, shaking his head. Katie then went to Harry, who looked at his hands.

"I'm Harry Potter, and there's nothing special to tell about me." A few Slytherins snickered at this, but Harry didn't acknowledge them.

"Oh, come on, Harry, there's got to be _something_ you can tell us," Katie insisted. "You were just adopted over the holiday, weren't you?"

"Yes, I was adopted by my godfathers, Sirius Black and Remus Lupin," Harry replied, blankly.

"Great, a family full of poufs," Ron muttered. Several people laughed and nodded their agreement. Harry just stared at him, silently and without any emotion in his face. Draco was about to stand up, his fists clenched, when Harry reached over to grab his hand, caressing it soothingly.

"That was completely uncalled for," Katie commented, her eyes flashing. "Detention, Mr. Weasley. Eight o'clock tonight with Mr. Filch." Ron scowled, but didn't say anything more. "Now, class, I will try my best to remember all of your names, and I look forward to teaching you. I have a small assignment that I would like turned in by our next class. I would like you all to write a summary of what Professor Stephens taught you last term. Be sure to include your opinions on the subjects. As we have half an hour remaining, you should take this time to begin your assignment."

As some of the class began to write their summaries, Katie came back and stood over Draco and Harry. She pulled a chair up between them and rested a hand on Harry's shoulder.

"You all right, sweetheart?" she asked, softly. Harry nodded, not looking up from his parchment. Draco gave his mum a worried look, and she nodded. "Harry, did you sleep any better last night?" Harry shook his head. "I'll see if Severus and I can find anything to help."

"Don't worry about it," Harry mumbled. "I'm fine."

"All the same, I'll see what we can do," Katie replied, firmly. She turned to Draco, who was now staring at Ron with anger in his eyes. "Don't even think about it. He'll get his, don't worry." 

Draco nodded, still clenching his fists. Katie patted his head and went back up to her desk. Harry, still watching what he wrote, reached out a hand and squeezed Draco's shoulder. 

"Don't worry about it," Harry murmured. "It's not worth it." Draco just sighed and nodded in defeat.

~~~

"Harry?" Draco said, softly, as the two sat on the sofa in the dungeons after classes. "Will you tell me what's caused you to be so...I don't know..._depressed_? You were all right yesterday, before you went off to take a nap. Everything went downhill from there, and you're... You're kind of scaring me." Harry shrugged his shoulders.

"I don't know," he replied in a small voice. "I just get in these moods sometimes. I'm sorry I scare you."

"Is it because of your nightmares?" Draco wondered. Harry sighed and nodded. "Tell me about them." Harry didn't reply; he only stared at his hand, intertwined with Draco's. "Do you see your aunt and uncle in your dreams? Are they flashbacks?" 

"Sometimes," Harry murmured, laying his head on Draco's shoulder. "Sometimes I see them beating me, I _feel_ it, almost as bad as it was when they actually did it... Sometimes I have dreams about being locked in the cupboard, and I'm suffocating. It was like being inside a coffin, or being buried alive..." He laughed, bitterly. "That's one of the lasting effects of what they did to me. Because of that bloody cupboard, I'm claustrophobic..." The two were silent for a few minutes until Draco spoke again. 

"Do you have nightmares every night?" Harry nodded. "How do you keep it from the people in your dorm?"

"I put Silencing Spells around my bed," Harry explained. "So when I scream or cry out, they don't hear me." Draco hugged Harry tightly. "Draco? You never told me anything about your...mother... What was the deal with her?" Draco sighed.

"Every time Lucius decided to...punish me for anything I did wrong...Narcissa looked the other way. Then the one time that she decided to show she cared, she got herself killed. Lucius was being unusually torturous towards me one night, and Narcissa got between us. She died, and of course, Lucius blamed it on me, so she really only made things worse. Her death wasn't made public or anything because Lucius paid everyone off, so that it would be kept quiet. But I wasn't too upset about it... She wasn't really my mother; if she was, then she would have stopped him years ago." Harry nodded his agreement, and once again, the two sat in silence.

"What time is it?" Harry asked after a while. Draco looked at his watch.

"A little after four," he replied. Harry's eyes widened.

"I have to go!" he exclaimed. "I'm late for Quidditch practice!" He gave Draco a quick kiss. "I love you. See you at dinner." With that, Harry ran out the door, retrieved his broom from his dorm, and rushed out to the Quidditch pitch.

"Hey, Harry!" Katie Bell called from the air. "Where have you been?" Angelina Johnson, the new captain, came to a landing beside Harry.

"You're late," she said, smirking. "Lost track of time with your _boyfriend_?" Harry sighed, knowing that Angelina didn't particularly like his being with Draco. She was one of the two people on the Gryffindor team who didn't approve; the other was Ron, who was Keeper this year.

"Sorry," Harry muttered. "I just--"

"Angelina, leave him alone!" Fred called as he flew over to them. "He's only a couple minutes late. And it's not like he _needs_ the practice."

"Yes, he does," Angelina retorted. "He also needs to get his priorities straight. He's been on this team for almost five years, and he's only been 'in love'--though I doubt it--with that little Slytherin bastard for a few months. He's already started to blow us off just so he can go _blow_ _him_!"

By then, the entire team had landed to see what was going on. Ron was smirking and agreeing with Angelina, while the rest of the team stood around Harry, shooting death glares towards the other two. Harry only shoved his hands in his pockets and stared at the ground, taking deep breaths as George squeezed his shoulders. Finally, Harry looked up at Angelina, his face expressionless.

"I can see that I'm causing a lot of problems for the team," he said, quietly. "I'm sorry if you think I'm shunning you; I don't mean to. I don't want to be a bother. I don't want to cause any problems, but that's what I'm doing. So the only choice I have is to quit. After the match on Friday, I won't be causing any more problems for you."

At that, Harry turned and began to walk towards the school. The rest of his team stared after him silently. After a minute, George lost it.

"What the hell is wrong with you two?!" he shouted at Angelina and Ron. "Do you know how screwed up that kid's life is already? Now you just had to go and make it worse! Why can't you just be happy for him? He's found someone who truly cares about him, and Draco is the only thing keeping Harry alive! Now he might have finally been sent over the edge, and it's your fault. If anything happens to him..." He shook his head, seething with anger. "You'd better hope nothing happens to him, or else you will regret it for the rest of your pathetic lives."


	19. Chapter 19

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

When Draco came to his usual spot with his Gryffindor friends in the Great Hall, he saw that Harry wasn't there. George stood up as soon as he saw Draco alone. His face was pale.

"Draco, where's Harry?" George asked, his voice shaking a little.

"I don't know," Draco replied, confused. "I thought he was with you guys, at Quidditch practice."

"Merlin, he was, but he left because of... Because of Angelina and Ron..." George muttered, running his fingers through his hair. He quickly explained what had happened, and Draco's skin turning paler with every word. 

"What do we do, George?" Fred wondered.

"Hermione and Ginny, search Gryffindor Tower," George instructed. "Fred, check the Astronomy Tower. Draco, go downstairs and see if he's in the dungeons. I'll talk to the teachers."

George ran to the High Table, where only four teachers were present: the Snapes, McGonagall, and Dumbledore. George frantically explained what had happened at Quidditch practice.

"--and he basically said that his only choice was to quit the team, so he wouldn't cause any more problems. Nobody's seen him since he ran off. Hermione and Ginny are checking Gryffindor Tower, Fred's going to the Astronomy Tower, and Draco's checking the dungeons."

"You've done a good job, Mr. Weasley," Dumbledore assured him, gently. "For now, we'll wait here until the others return with any news."

Within twenty minutes, they had returned, solemn-faced, and rushed to the High Table.

"Anything?" Severus asked. The kids all shook their heads, and then Fred's eyes widened suddenly.

"George! The map! Merlin, why didn't we think of it before?!" George ran back to their table and rummaged through his books and parchments before returning with a blank piece of parchment. Fred tapped it with his wand.

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," he muttered. Within seconds, black lines appeared on the parchment, ending up looking like a map. Black dots, labeled with names, were all over the map. "Come on... Harry Potter, Harry Potter..." 

"He's in the passage from the Gryffindor common room," George said, pointing at the flickering dot labeled Harry. "He's flickering. Something's wrong."

"How big is the passage?" Draco asked, suddenly.

"Not very big at all," Fred responded. "It's long, but it's narrow; maybe eighteen inches wide? Why?"

"He's claustrophobic," Draco explained. "He can't handle being in really small, enclosed spaces. It's because of that cupboard he was locked in for three months."

"Mr. Weasley," Severus said to George. "I want you to show me this passage."

"Sir, I don't think you'd be able to fit in there to get Harry," George told him. He looked around the group. "_I_ can't even fit. I think the only ones who would be able to get to him are Ginny and Draco."

"I'll do it," Draco said immediately. George nodded and led Severus and Draco to the Gryffindor common room, while the others stayed in the Great Hall.

"It's right behind this portrait," George said, pointing at a framed picture of a lion on the wall. He tapped it lightly with his wand and muttered a few words, and the picture swung open, revealing a tall but narrow entrance. "Draco, according to the map, he isn't very far in. Maybe fifty feet or so."

"When you find him, call back to us as you bring him back," Severus instructed Draco. "Let us know how he is, so that we can be prepared to help him." Draco nodded and climbed into the passage.

"_Lumos_," he muttered, holding out his wand. 

He quickly, but carefully made his way through the passageway. Sure enough, after about fifty or sixty feet, he ran into Harry. The raven-haired boy lay unconscious on the floor, and Draco knelt down to him. He leaned over to rest his ear by Harry's mouth, then touched his neck. The boy's skin was ice-cold, and he had a faint pulse. 

"Dad!" Draco shouted down towards the exit. "Dad, he's not breathing!"

"All right, Draco, get him back out here as fast as you can," Severus called back. Draco leaned back over to Harry, trying to get a good hold on him, and began to pull him back.

"Come on, love, I'm going to get you out of here," Draco whispered, tears welling up in his eyes. Within minutes, they'd reached the opening. George pulled Draco out, and Severus lifted Harry up into his arms.

"Hospital wing," he said, and the boys followed him. 

~~~

"Harry, love?" Draco said, caressing the boy's cheek as he woke up in the hospital wing.

"Hmm?" Harry mumbled, opening his eyes.

"I'd like to propose a little challenge," Draco told him, intertwining his fingers between Harry's. "I'll give you a hundred galleons if you can stay out of here for the rest of the term." Harry grinned, weakly.

"Make it one-fifty, and you've got yourself a deal¼" Draco smiled, shaking his head.

"You're something else, love." He changed the subject. "So tell me what happened." Harry sighed.

"Left Quidditch practice, wanted to be alone¼ I somehow found the passage in the common room and went in. I didn't know it was that small, and when I realized just how small it was, I panicked and passed out, I guess." He winced in pain and reached a hand up to touch his head. "Ah, my head hurts¼"

"Apparently, you hit your head when you fainted," Draco explained.

"Who got me out?" Harry wondered.

"I did," Draco said, simply. "Ginny and I were the only ones small enough to fit, so I got you out."

"Did I look really bad?" Harry asked, quietly.

"You were really pale, and your skin was freezing," Draco sighed, a tear escaping from his eyes. "You weren't breathing, Harry. I thought you were dead." Harry reached up and wiped Draco's tear away.

"Don't cry, baby," he murmured, running his fingers through Draco's hair. "I'm fine now." He moved over a little on the bed, and Draco lay down with him, resting his head on Harry's chest.

"I love you," Draco whispered. "I don't know what I'd do if I lost you." Harry pressed his lips against Draco's forehead.

"You won't lose me," he promised.


	20. Chapter 20

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

When Draco stepped through the fireplace and into Sirius and Remus's house on Saturday night, he was instantly amazed. There were no lights on; instead, there were candles floating in the air, only dimly lighting the room. A small Christmas tree stood in the corner of the living room, surrounded by gifts.

The aroma of pasta greeted him as he stepped closer towards the dining room. He stood in the doorway, looking around the room. There was a candle in each corner of the room, and the small table had two places set on it, directly across from one another. On one plate was a red rose and a small piece of parchment. Draco read the note, smiling.

__

Draco,

Sit and relax. I'll be with you in a moment. I hope you're prepared for a good time this evening; I know I am. Happy Christmas, darling.

I love you.

Harry

Draco sat down, and soon after, Harry entered the room. He leaned over and kissed the top of Draco's head, then sat across from him, smiling nervously.

"Before we eat," he said, "I just want to tell you that if you don't like what I made, don't act like you do just for my sake, all right? I've only ever cooked for¼_them_¼and once or twice for Sirius and Remus, but never anything like this, so I'm not sure how good it will be."

"I'm sure it will be just fine," Draco assured him.

Harry nodded and snapped his fingers, and suddenly the meal appeared before them. Portions of spaghetti were on each plate, and a basket of bread sat next to a candle in the middle of the table. Draco glanced up at Harry.

"How did you know spaghetti's my favorite?" Harry smiled, slyly.

"I have my ways," he said. "Actually, Severus told me." He watched hopefully as Draco took a bite.

"This," Draco said, finally, "is by far the best spaghetti I've ever had." Harry's eyes widened. "And no, I'm not just saying that. It really is great, love. Thank you." Harry just smiled. "What else do you have planned for us tonight?"

"Mm, a movie, presents¼ We'll see what else after that." Harry grinned, mischievously.

After dinner, the two went into the living room and sat on the floor. Harry turned on _It's A Wonderful Life_, and the boys lay against each other, opening their presents.

Draco opened his first present from Harry and saw that it was a set of books: _The Complete Works of William Shakespeare_. He also received a silver necklace with a dragon pendant, and two pairs of silk boxer shorts, one pair in Slytherin colors, and the other in Gryffindor colors.

"Thank you, love," Draco murmured, pressing his lips against Harry's. "Yours, now."

Harry began to open his gifts from Draco. The first was a gold necklace with a lion pendant. The lion had gemstones for eyes, and they were glowing red at that moment.

"When it glows red, that means the person who gave it to you-that's me-is near," Draco explained. "When it glows green, danger is near."

The second gift was a gold claddagh ring. Draco slid it onto Harry's left ring finger, with the heart facing inward.

"Katie bought this in Ireland and gave it to me for Christmas," the blond said, softly. " She told me to give it to the person I fall in love with. The heart symbolizes love. The hands symbolize faith in friendship, and the crown symbolizes loyalty¼ When it's worn on the left hand, with the heart facing in, it means that the wearer's heart is promised forever. Will you promise me your heart forever, Harry?"

Harry didn't speak. He only wrapped his arms around Draco, kissing him deeply.

"Thank you," Harry whispered when he pulled away. Draco smiled.

"There's one more present for you," he told Harry. "But it has to wait until we get back to school." Harry nodded, and the two lay in each other's arms until the movie was over.

"Now what?" Draco wondered after a few moments of silence. Harry smiled mischievously and stood up with Draco, taking his hand.

"Close your eyes," Harry said. Draco did so, and Harry led him upstairs.

When Draco opened his eyes, he found that they were in Harry's dimly-lit bedroom. At that moment, it was mostly empty, except for a sofa and Harry's bed. The bed was dressed in dark red sheets and was surrounded by matching curtains.

"Now, my darling¼" Harry murmured, closing the door and muttering a couple of spells. "Now we do anything you want to do. I am completely at your mercy."


	21. Chapter 21

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

A couple of hours later, Draco and Harry lay in bed, entangled in blankets and soaked with sweat. Harry lay on his side, and Draco wrapped his arms around the boy from behind, pulling him close. 

"Are you all right, love?" Draco murmured, dropping light kisses over Harry's skin. Harry nodded.

"Sore," he replied, quietly. "You'd think I'd be used to it by now--" Harry covered his mouth with his hand, shaking his head. "No, I am _not_ going to compare you to them. This is a good kind of sore..." Draco buried his face in the other boy's hair.

"I love you," he whispered. Harry turned over onto his back and smiled up at Draco, who propped himself up by his arm.

"You are a god, Draco," Harry murmured, smiling tiredly. Draco grinned.

"I like to think so," he agreed, smirking and leaning down to capture Harry's lips with his own. "What time is it?" Harry glanced at a clock on the wall.

"Nearly eleven," he responded. Draco frowned. "You have to get back to school." The blond boy nodded his head. 

"Dad wanted me back by eleven," he sighed. Harry reached up to run his fingers across Draco's chest.

"I don't want you to leave me," he whispered.

"You'll be coming back in the morning," Draco reminded him. He climbed out of bed and retrieved his clothes from around the room, then proceeded to get dressed. "Anyway, you're sleepy. Just go to sleep for a few hours, have good dreams--about me, of course--and when you wake up in the morning, you can come back to school, all right?" 

Harry sighed and nodded his head. Draco, now fully-dressed (although sloppily), bent over and gave Harry another kiss, caressing the boy's cheek with his hand.

"I love you, my love," Draco murmured.

"And I, you, my darling," Harry murmured back, grabbing Draco's hand.

"'Goodnight, goodnight! Parting is such sweet sorrow that I shall say goodnight till it be morrow,'" Draco quoted as he left the room, letting go of Harry's hand as he walked.

After about ten minutes, Harry decided that he didn't want to go to sleep. He got out of bed and put on his pajamas, then wrapped a small blanket around himself and went down to the kitchen for some hot chocolate. When he got down there, he saw that his fathers were already home, and Remus was already making hot chocolate.

"Hi, Dad, hi, Daddy," Harry greeted them, padding over to the table. He sat down, yawning, and wrapped the blanket tighter around himself.

"How was your evening, kiddo?" Sirius asked, a twinkle in his eye. Harry just smiled, dreamily, as Remus placed a cup in front of him. "Harry, please, you're only fifteen. Don't tell me you and Draco..." His words trailed to an end. Harry shrugged his shoulders.

"Fine," he replied, smirking. Remus chuckled.

"Come on, Siri, Harry's a smart kid," he insisted. "He knows what he's doing. Besides, weren't you a year younger than him when you and--"

"That's enough," Sirius stated, holding up a hand to stop Remus from continuing. "Remus, these are different times, and I'm just trying to look out for him."

"I know that, but if Harry wants to have sex, it's his decision," Remus explained. "As long as he knows the consequences of his actions, and as long as he knows that--"

"All right, now that's it," Harry interrupted him. "I would appreciate it if you two wouldn't discuss my sex life as though I'm not in the room. Thank you. And considering the shite I went through last summer when it came to sex, I can tell you that Draco was an _extremely_ pleasant change tonight." His eyes widened, as did his fathers'. "Oh, Merlin, you didn't know that part. I shouldn't have said that. I'm going to bed, good night!" 

Harry jumped up from his seat, ignoring the protests from Sirius and Remus, and went back up to his bedroom. He cleaned up a bit, then climbed under the covers on his bed and closed his eyes. After a little while, he heard the door open and close, and felt the edge of his bed sink down a little.

"Harry," Remus said, softly. He placed the ball of fur known as Harry's cat, Peachy, next to Harry on the bed. "I could tell you're in a bit of pain."

"Was it that obvious?" Harry wondered, sheepishly, as he scratched behind Peachy's ears. Remus chuckled, shaking his head.

"Only to someone who has been there," he responded. He smoothed Harry's hair back from his forehead. "Do you need anything? The pain will probably be gone by the time you wake up in the morning, but if you want to take something for it..." Harry shook his head.

"No, thank you, I'll be fine," he replied. He smiled a little. "And somehow I get the feeling that I'll be sleeping just fine tonight, so no sleeping potion either." Remus smiled back.

"All right," he said. "Good night, kid." He kissed Harry's forehead, then stood up and headed for the door.

"Night, Daddy..." Harry mumbled as he drifted off to sleep.


	22. Chapter 22

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

"Hello, everybody," Harry greeted his friends as they ate breakfast in the Great Hall the next morning. He yawned as he sat between Hermione and Ginny.

"Hey, Harry, where's your other half?" Hermione teased. She offered him a piece of toast, but he declined.

"No, thank you, I had breakfast before I left," he said. "And it's only eight thirty. Draco never gets up before nine on Sundays."

"You're looking pretty happy, Harry," Fred commented, smirking. "Did you two have a good time last night?" Harry nodded, smiling.

"Did you get laid?" George guessed. Harry rested his elbows on the table, covering his grin with his hands, but his face still turned red. "You did! Wow, good job, Harry!" 

Just then, an owl flew into the Great Hall, landing in front of Harry on the table. It was Draco's eagle owl, and he held a rose in his beak. A letter was tied to his leg. Harry untied the parchment and took the rose, then gave the owl some food, and the owl flew off. Harry unrolled Draco's letter and read it.

__

My love,

I could say something dirty right now and get you all riled up in front of everyone, but I've decided to wait until you're with me to get you all riled up. I just wanted to say 'thank you' for last night. That was by far the best Christmas I've ever had, and it was the sweetest thing anyone has ever done for me. Meet me in the Astronomy Tower at 10:00 this morning so I can give you your last present. I love you.

Draco

P.S.-You were amazing.

Harry blushed a little as he read the postscript, then looked up and noticed that everyone was watching him expectantly. The twins were grinning and whispering to each other.

"What are you two whispering about?" Harry wondered, smirking.

"Oh, we were just wondering what he wrote to make you turn so red," George responded, quickly. "So what did he write?" Harry raised an eyebrow.

"I'm not telling," he stated, shaking his head and smiling. He stood up. "I need to go upstairs for a bit; I have some homework to finish. I'll see you all later!" With that, he went up to his dorm and sat on his bed with his Defense homework.

"Hey, Harry?" George said after about twenty minutes. He stood in the doorway to the dorm, looking uncertain, which was totally out of character for the Weasley. Harry motioned for him to come in, and George sat on the edge of Harry's bed.

"What's up, George?" Harry asked.

"There's a couple of things I wanted to talk to you about," George told him. "First off, McGonagall heard about what Angelina said to you last week, and she took away Angelina's Captain privileges. Katie's Captain now, and we were all hoping... We were hoping you'd come back to the team. Harry, you're the best Seeker we've ever had. We _need_ you."

"I'll think about it, all right?" Harry sighed after a moment. "I'm not making any promises. All I know is that there are two people on the team who hate me, and...I just don't really know if I'll be able to handle it."

"Fair enough," George agreed. "The second thing I wanted to talk about is something I've kind of been wondering about for a really long time now." He lowered his voice. "How is Draco Mal--er, Snape--in bed?" Harry burst out laughing, and George's face turned bright red.

"I'm sorry, George, I don't mean to laugh at you," Harry apologized, chuckling. "It's just, you know, that wasn't something that I was expecting you to ask. Anyway... I won't give details, but I will tell you that it was _very_ good. And no offense to you, but I pray to Merlin that you won't ever find out how good he is." George just laughed. "Hey, he owes me ten galleons now. We made a bet on how long it would be before you told one of us you're gay. I said it'd be by Valentine's Day."

"Thanks a lot!" George exclaimed, sarcastically. He sniffed. "I feel so used." Then he grinned and saluted. "Glad I could gain some extra money for you."

"So who all knows about you?" Harry wondered.

"Fred, Ginny, you, Draco, Lee, Katie, and that's about it," George responded. "Oh, and Bill and Charlie know."

"Not Ron? Good decision not to tell him."

"After what he did to you, I'm not looking forward to finding out what he'd do to his own brother," George agreed. "I don't know about Mum and Dad, either. I'm not really sure how they'd take it." His eyes suddenly sparkled. "So Harry, what of that letter Draco sent you this morning?" Harry laughed and handed the parchment over to him.

"Read it if you must."

"All right, then, I will." George unrolled the letter and read it quickly, his eyes widening at some parts. Finally, he handed the note back to Harry, who smirked. "I'm jealous, Harry. What did you do for Christmas last night, besides what I already know?"

"I made him his favorite meal, then we put on a movie and exchanged gifts. Then we went upstairs, and that was that." George chuckled.

"I don't know if I should be jealous of him or of you," he commented. Harry just smiled, and George rose from the bed. "Well, I'll leave you to finish your homework. Thanks, Harry." 

"Anytime, George."


	23. Chapter 23

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

When Harry met Draco in the Astronomy Tower, his eyes widened in surprise. Sitting on the floor by Draco's feet was a cage with a beautiful raven in it. Draco smiled as Harry knelt down in front of the cage.

"I had difficulties deciding between this and a snake," Draco explained. "I finally picked the raven because you can train him, and he would be more useful than a snake."

"What kinds of things can ravens be trained to do?" Harry wondered, reaching a finger through the bars of the cage and stroking the bird's feathers.

"You can teach them to talk, take things to people, _steal_ things_ from_ people... All kinds of stuff."

"Wow, that's nifty," Harry commented, standing up so that he was level with Draco. "Thank you, my darling." He gave Draco a light kiss.

"You're quite welcome. Want to give him a name?"

"Um..." Harry thought for a moment. "I'm really bad with names for pets, as you can tell by the cat." Draco chuckled. "How about...Midnight? Yeah, that's good. I like that." The bird seemed to like it as well.

"All right, now that we've gotten that settled, let's take him upstairs to your dorm, and then I need you to come to the dungeons with me."

A short while later, the two lay on Draco's bed, silent and content. Harry twirled a lock of Draco's blond hair between his fingers.

"Something's wrong," Harry said, suddenly, as he glanced at the other boy, who merely nodded. "What is it, Draco?" Draco wrapped his arms around Harry's waist, laying his head on Harry's chest.

"I didn't sleep too well last night, although I really should have..." Draco mumbled. "I had a nightmare, and um... I decided that I have something to tell you, about my...past life... Do you remember that Secret Revealing Potion we did in Dad's class a while back?" Harry nodded. 

"You nearly passed out when you saw your parchment."

"I have two secrets, Harry, that I've kept from everyone for years, and I--I just can't keep them in anymore." He took a deep breath. "First off, I was given the Dark Mark at birth, as my father assumed that I would follow in his footsteps and become a Death Eater. The Mark won't be _activated_, I guess you could say, until I turn sixteen. That's in less than two months."

"Oh, Draco..." Harry murmured, rubbing the boy's back. "You should tell someone; besides me, I mean." Draco nodded, then continued.

"The second thing is... Harry, you-- You're not the only wizard who has survived Avada Kedavra." Harry gasped in surprise. "I, um... You never knew I had a sister, did you? I did. Her name was Athena, and she was only two years younger than me. Merlin, Harry, she was beautiful. Long blonde hair, and the brightest blue eyes you've ever seen... But she was female, and she was deemed unworthy of the Malfoy name, according to Lucius. He thought that wizards were naturally better than witches, and that females were only good for reproduction.

"When Athena got her Hogwarts letter, I was thrilled. I was so proud of her... But Lucius wasn't. He didn't want her to go to school. He didn't even want her to be alive because for some reason, he felt that she was a threat to himself, to me...

"I don't remember exactly what happened that night. Narcissa was gone; one of her various social functions, I suppose. Lucius took Athena into the dungeons and beat her up some. I stood in a corner for a minute or two, but it seemed like it was much longer than that. And I couldn't do anything.

"I _didn't_ do anything, until he pulled out his wand. I knew something was wrong because up until then, he rarely used his wand to hurt us. As soon as he said the words, I jumped out and got between the wand and my sister. I felt the curse hit me in my chest, and I thought everything was over. I hit my head on the floor and kept fading in and out of consciousness... When I woke up, he was using the curse again on her. She died instantly.

"Why didn't I die that night, Harry? Why couldn't it have been me instead of my sister? Your mother sacrificed herself, and her love for you kept you alive. Why couldn't it be the same for me? Athena's love for me kept me alive, but my love for her _killed_ her." Draco finally broke down in a fit of sobs. "Merlin, I killed my baby sister..."

"Draco, don't say that," Harry whispered, cradling the blond boy's upper body in his arms. Draco buried his face in Harry's chest, just letting everything out. "You tried to save her, and that's all anyone can ask for. You didn't kill her; Lucius did."

"I could have stopped him," Draco insisted. "I could have cursed him before he could hurt her. I could have provoked him and bought her some time to get away!"

"Draco," Harry said, firmly, grabbing him by his shoulders and forcing him to look into Harry's eyes. "It is _not_ your fault. It is all Lucius's fault. You cannot blame yourself for anything." Draco buried his face in Harry's chest once more, holding onto him for dear life. "Baby, you need to tell Severus about this, at least. He can help you better than I can. I don't know what to do for you."

"I-I will," Draco sniffed. "I'll tell him... Not yet. Not today. I just, I can't, Harry. It hurt bad enough telling you. I hate to remember..."

"And with good reason," Harry assured him. He hugged Draco tightly and kissed his temple. "Just remember that I'm here for you if you need anything, all right? I'll always be here for you."

"Thank you, Harry," Draco mumbled. "Do you, um... Do you think you could...leave me alone for a while? I just--I want to be alone for a while. All right?"

"Sure, darling," Harry agreed. He bent over and gave Draco a small kiss. "Just...promise me, promise me you won't do anything stupid. Tell me I shouldn't worry about you."

"I promise, and don't worry," Draco said, softly. "I'm always fine. What would make this time any different?" 

"I'll be around if you need me," Harry promised. He smoothed Draco's hair back, then left the room.


	24. Chapter 24

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

As Harry tried to go to sleep that night, he wondered about Draco. Would he really be all right after remembering what had happened to his sister? Harry decided to try and listen in on Draco's mind, to see what he was thinking about. It took several minutes of concentration, but eventually he heard Draco's voice.

__

-I've been a cruel person my whole life, and Athena was sweet and innocent. Why did I live? I didn't deserve it. I don't deserve to live. _I couldn't keep my baby sister alive. I killed her. I killed Athena. I don't want to live. I want to die. Just two hundred feet, I'll be dead before one hundred..._

Harry jumped out of bed and grabbed his broomstick, then ran out of Gryffindor Tower. He headed for the Astronomy Tower, knowing that that's where Draco would be. Harry knew that Draco wouldn't die after jumping, because of the charms and spells around the tower. Still, Harry was worried. Draco had promised that he wouldn't do anything stupid.

Harry reached the top of the tower just as Draco jumped out the window. Harry mounted his broom and flew out after Draco, into the light snowfall. He pushed the broom to go faster as Draco fell, and he caught the boy before he began levitating.

"Harry?" Draco muttered, a little lightheaded. "What the hell..." 

Harry wrapped his arm around Draco's torso, keeping him steady on the broom as they landed on the ground. As soon as they had landed, Draco pulled away from Harry and stood on shaky legs. Harry grabbed him by his arms and made him lie down on the ground.

"Harry, how... Why did you--" Draco couldn't seem to finish any of his questions.

"First of all, it wouldn't have worked, even if I hadn't come along," Harry said, firmly. "Dumbledore put charms around the tower so nobody can kill themselves by jumping. Second, you _promised_ me, Draco! You promised you wouldn't do anything stupid! It's just a good thing I tried to get in your mind when I did!"

"I let my sister die, Harry!" Draco snapped, tears streaming from his eyes. "I don't deserve to live!" He tried to sit up, but Harry pushed him back down.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Harry asked, holding back his tears. "Draco, you tried to help her! But you _couldn't_, and that's _not your fault_!" He shook his head, wiping his face with his sleeve. "Didn't you even think about what the rest of us would do if you killed yourself? Me, Severus, Katie, our friends--we all love you! Didn't you even stop and think about what you would be doing to us?!"

"You all deserve better," Draco whispered. "You deserve better than somebody who killed his own sister..."

Just then, Harry noticed three figures running towards them: Dumbledore, Severus, and Katie. As soon as Harry had taken his eyes off of Draco, he noticed that it was snowing, and he, wearing only his pajamas, was shivering with cold. Looking back down at Draco, he saw that the blond boy's lips were slightly blue, and his face was even more pale than normal.

"What happened here?" Severus asked, kneeling next to Draco. Harry took a breath and looked at Draco, who stared back with pleading eyes. Harry shook his head.

__

-I'm sorry, Draco. 

Harry then began to explain what had been going on.

"Draco had a nightmare last night, about something really bad that happened almost three years ago. He thinks it's his fault that it happened, though it _isn't_. I was trying to go to sleep tonight, but I was worried about him. I heard his thoughts, and I knew he was in the tower, about to jump, so I grabbed my broom and went to the tower. I got there right as he jumped, and I flew out the window and caught him before he began to levitate."

"How could you possibly have known what he was doing, Harry?" Dumbledore asked, curiously.

"I'm telepathic," Harry replied, quickly, "and I have several other powers that I haven't told you about, but that doesn't matter right now!" He coughed a little and wrapped his arms around himself as he shivered.

"He's right, Albus, it _doesn't_ matter right now," Katie agreed as Severus lifted Draco up into his arms. "We need to get these two inside before they get sick." 

Katie held a hand out to Harry and helped him to stand, wrapping her cloak and her arms around him as they all went into the castle. They went straight to the hospital wing, and the boys were made to lay down on the beds.

"Is he okay?" Harry asked, uncertainly, as he glanced over at Draco. The blond boy stared up at the ceiling, tears dripping from his eyes. "Draco?" He didn't answer.

"He'll be just fine, sweetheart," Katie assured Harry, making him drink a small amount of potion. "Just relax and go to sleep, all right?" Harry, already sleepy, quickly drifted off.

"Draco?" Severus said, softly, as he sat next to the boy. Draco turned his eyes towards his father. "Can you please tell me what happened?" Draco shook his head, wiping his eyes.

"I can't, it hurts too much," he whispered. "Do _Memorius Revealus_..." Severus nodded and glanced at Dumbledore.

"Are you sure?" the Headmaster asked Draco, who nodded. "All right then. _Memorius Revealus_!" 

Draco fell unconscious, and the Headmaster, Severus, Katie, and Madam Pomfrey found themselves in some kind of dungeon. It was obvious that this dungeon was used for torture, as there were many weapons and machines decorating the room.

Suddenly a blond-haired man entered the room, dragging a young girl by the arm. The girl was no more than eleven years old, and she had blond hair and blue eyes. The expression on her face was a look of pure terror as the man, her father, threw her against the wall.

"Father, I'm sorry!" she cried, falling to the floor. "I didn't mean to--" She gasped in pain as she was kicked in her ribs. Her father continued to kick her, slap her, and punch her for several moments before finally telling her to stand.

"Get up, idiot girl!" he shouted at her. "You worthless, good-for-nothing _female_! You are a disgrace to the Malfoy name!" He pointed his wand at her. "_Avada Kedavra_!"

A green light shot out of his wand, but before it could reach the girl, another person with blond hair threw himself in front of her. The curse hit him square in his chest, and he screamed and fell to the floor.

"Draco!" the girl shrieked. She knelt down beside the boy and gently shook him, trying to get him to wake up. Suddenly, she was pulled up by her hair, and the wand was pointed at her again. She looked up at her father with tears falling down her face.

"Let's try this again, shall we?" the man sneered. "_Avada Kedavra_!" The girl dropped to the floor, and the man left the room. 

All of a sudden, Draco painfully pulled himself to his hands and knees and crawled over to the girl's body. He pulled her into his lap, cradling her in his arms and rocking her back and forth as he cried.

"I'm sorry, Sissy," he whispered, hugging her tightly. "I'm so sorry... I love you..."

Everything went black for a moment, and then the familiar surroundings of the hospital wing reappeared. All of the adults in the room looked extremely shocked. Severus saw that Draco was slowly opening his eyes, and the older wizard hugged the boy tightly.

"She was beautiful, wasn't she?" Draco murmured, weakly. "My baby sister..."


	25. Chapter 25

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

"Harry, wake up. You're dreaming, Harry, it's all right. It's just a nightmare."

Harry's eyes opened wide, and he bolted upright in his bed, looking frantically around the room. Sweat poured from his skin, and his hands shook uncontrollably. As he looked around the room, he found that Draco lay still on his bed. Harry also found that Remus was sitting next to him, holding his hand and rubbing his back.

"Are you all right?" Remus asked Harry, a concerned look on his face. Harry leaned into his father's embrace, trying to slow his breathing.

"Fine, Daddy," he mumbled. "Just a nightmare, I'm fine..."

"Do you want to talk about it?" Harry shook his head, coughing a little, then frowned.

"I'm not sick, am I?" Remus chuckled.

"You caught yourself quite a cold last night. All I want to know is why, if you knew about the charms around the tower, why would you still go outside, in the freezing cold and snow, in your pajamas?" Harry picked his head up and stared into Remus's eyes.

"What would _you_ do if you suddenly realized that Dad was about to try and kill himself? Even if you knew it wouldn't work, you wouldn't worry about anything except getting to him, in case something went wrong."

"Point taken." Harry snuggled into Remus's robes for warmth. "Dumbledore told me all of what happened. He was rather concerned about why Draco's memory came up so suddenly, as he'd been doing a good job hiding it for over two years. It turns out that he was cursed. Somebody put a curse on him that makes him remember something and feel like it's his fault. The end result of the curse is that the guilt takes over, and the victim kills themselves. The curse was taken off, though, so Draco should be just fine when he wakes up."

"I hope so," Harry sighed, shivering as he lay his head on Remus's shoulder. "Where's Dad?"

"At home. He's been quite tired the past few days, so I told him I'd take care of this. You've been excused from all of your classes today and tomorrow, at least, so I'll be spending some time here with you."

"I wonder if Draco's going to hold me to that bet," Harry said, thoughtfully. At Remus's confused look, he explained, "Last time I was in here, he told me he'd give me a hundred and fifty galleons if I could stay out of here for the rest of the term."

"I only said a hundred," Draco muttered from his bed. "_You_ said a hundred and fifty." He turned over to face Harry and Remus, yawning. "And it doesn't matter because you lost."

"How long have you been awake?" Harry wondered.

"Since you started screaming in your nightmare," Draco replied, rubbing his eyes. "But don't worry about waking me up. I didn't like my sleep anyway..." He changed the subject. "What's for breakfast?" Remus laughed a little.

"What do you _want_ for breakfast?" he asked. Draco thought for a moment.

"Um...pancakes? Yeah, pancakes are good." 

Smirking, Harry snapped his fingers. A breakfast tray appeared on each boy's lap, and on the trays were pancakes, syrup, sliced apples, and orange juice. Draco grinned, tiredly.

"Thanks, love." Remus just stared at Harry in surprise.

"How did you do that?" the older wizard asked.

"I can do a lot of stuff," Harry replied, shrugging his shoulders. "I've been working on controlling it all year."

"What else can you do?" 

"Um... I can do wandless magic, as you just saw... I'm telepathic."

"He has a healing touch," Draco put in. He glared at Harry. "But if you demonstrate that on yourself again, I'll be very mad."

"Don't worry, I don't have enough energy for that anyway," Harry assured him, yawning. He looked at Remus. "Did you eat breakfast yet?" Remus shook his head. "Eat mine. I'm not as hungry as I thought I was. Oh, wait." Harry waved his hand over the silverware, and it was replaced with gold. "There you go." Remus chuckled.

"You have to eat some, too," he said before taking a bite of the pancakes. "Draco, how are you feeling?"

"All right," Draco replied. "Tired. I feel better about¼what happened¼ A lot better since the curse was taken off, anyway¼ Not feeling great with this bloody cold, though."

"Eh, it'll be gone in a few days or so," Harry told him, before turning his head away from the food and sneezing. "Now, if you two don't mind, I think I'm going to go back to sleep¼"


	26. Chapter 26

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

The twenty-second of February was the day of Draco's birthday party, though his birthday was really the twenty-third. Severus, Katie, and Harry organized the party, which was held at Remus and Sirius's house. They all came, as did Hermione, Ginny, Fred, and George. At first, everyone was having a good time eating, watching television, and listening to music, but there was one person who seemed to have something else on his mind.

Draco.

Everyone was in the living room watching a movie, Harry and Draco sitting together in a chair. Suddenly, Draco stood up and slipped out of the room unnoticed by everyone except for Harry, who soon followed. Draco was heading up to Harry's bedroom, and once Harry got up there, he found Draco sitting on his bed. The blond boy held Harry's teddy bear tightly in his arms and stared at the floor. When Harry sat next to him, Draco didn't say a word. He just leaned into Harry's embrace, closing his eyes.

"You're supposed to be having fun, baby," Harry murmured, stroking Draco's hair. "It's your birthday party. What's the problem?"

"The problem is tomorrow's my sixteenth birthday," Draco sighed. Harry rested his cheek on top of Draco's head.

"You're worried about the Mark, aren't you?" Draco nodded slightly.

"I've seen people receive the Dark Mark," he explained, quietly. "Usually, it's activated as soon as they get it, and it causes a severe amount of pain... I could tell by their screams how badly it hurt; it was like they'd been hit with the Cruciatus. I-I don't want to hurt again, Harry." Harry held Draco tightly, letting the blond boy bury his face in Harry's chest.

"I wish I could tell you that everything will be all right," Harry whispered. "I would do anything to be able to tell you that, but I can't because we won't know what happens until it happens... Do you want me to stay with you in the dungeons tonight? If it hurts, I might be able to try--" Draco cut him off by shaking his head.

"I've been reading everything I could possibly find on Death Eaters and Dark Marks. I haven't found a single way to lessen the pain or remove the Mark."

"There _has_ to be a way," Harry said, softly. "Have you asked Severus or Katie?" 

"No... They don't even know I have the Mark yet," Draco admitted. "They'll, uh... They'll probably find out when I start screaming tomorrow, though."

"Don't you think you ought to prepare them, instead of give them heart attacks?" Harry wondered.

"Hmph," Draco snorted. "I may as well get _some_ kind of amusement out of this whole ordeal..."

"Anyway... Do you want me to stay with you tonight?" Harry asked again. "Even if it's just to sit there with you."

"Would you?" Draco said in a small voice. Glancing up at Harry, he seemed so young and vulnerable.

"Of course," Harry said, soothingly, as he hugged Draco. "I love you, and I'll do anything for you."

"Thank you."

~~~

"Any idea when it will happen?" Harry asked, softly, around two-thirty in the morning. He and Draco sat on Draco's bed, leaning against the wall. Harry was cradling Draco in his arms, while Draco just stared at his left arm.

"Soon," Draco murmured, laying his head on Harry's shoulder. "It's two-thirty-three. I was born at two-fifty-seven." They sat in silence for the next twenty-four minutes.

Suddenly, at two-fifty-seven, Draco inhaled sharply. He closed his eyes, pressing his face into Harry's shoulder, and tried to take deep breaths. An icy pain ripped through his arm as the black Mark appeared on the inside of his left forearm. The pain traveled through his entire arm before coursing through his whole body. Draco gritted his teeth, taking in short, rapid breaths and blinking back tears.

"Draco, baby, if you don't let it out, the pain will be worse," Harry told him, his eyes welling up with tears. He hated seeing his boyfriend hurting so badly. "Let it out, scream, cry, _something_, please!" Draco shook his head from side to side, not letting Harry see his face.

Finally, Draco couldn't take it anymore. He let out a scream of excruciating pain and broke down in tears. Harry held Draco in his lap, hugging him tightly and pushing his hair back from his sweaty forehead. Seconds after he screamed, Severus and Katie ran into the room. Harry looked up at them, a sad look in his eyes.

"He's had the Dark Mark since birth," Harry said, quietly. He kissed Draco's hair, rubbing his back. "It was just activated, the minute he turned sixteen." Katie glanced at Severus, whose face had paled.

"Severus, is there anything we can do for him?" she asked, softly. Severus slowly shook his head, his eyes downcast as he remembered receiving his own Dark Mark.

"The first time is always the worst," he explained, quietly. "There's nothing that can be done; nothing that _I _know of, anyway." Draco curled up in Harry's lap, whimpering.

"How long does it last?" Harry wondered.

"It's different for everyone," Severus sighed. "It could be minutes, or it could be hours. We just have to wait it out." Harry sighed, shaking his head. He closed his eyes and began to concentrate.

__

-Open your mind to me, Draco. Let me feel your pain, if it will help.

"No!" Draco exclaimed suddenly, looking up at Harry. "No, I won't let you do that, Harry..." Draco cringed in pain once more, clutching his left arm with his right hand, and Harry suddenly had an idea.

"Draco, darling, lay down," Harry said, softly, as he gently moved the blond boy from his lap. "I have an idea. Just lay down, try to take deep breaths, and try to relax as best you can." He looked at the two adults. "Can one of you hold his hand, so he can't touch the Mark?" 

Severus did so, and Harry sat next to Draco, who now lay flat on the bed. Taking a breath, Harry lowered his hands to the Mark. He winced as the heat from it burned his hands, but he didn't pull his hands away. He closed his eyes and focused all of his energy towards his hands.

After what seemed to be hours, but in reality was only a couple of minutes, Harry opened his eyes and took his hands away. He saw that Draco's eyes were closed, and a peaceful expression was on his face. Seeing the worried looks on Severus's and Katie's faces, Harry rested a hand on Draco's forehead and began to listen to his mind. Then he looked at the adults and smiled slightly.

"He's asleep," Harry murmured, weakly. The two just stared at him in disbelief.

"How in Merlin's name did you do that?" Katie asked, finally. Harry shrugged his shoulders.

"I can heal with my hands," he said, quietly. He was growing increasingly tired with every word he spoke. "Decided to try it, didn't think it would really _work_¼ Focused all my energy¼" With that, Harry blacked out.


	27. Chapter 27

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

When Harry opened his eyes again, he found himself lying comfortably under the blankets in Draco's bed. He glanced around the room and saw the blond boy curled up in a chair, reading a library book. Harry sighed quietly, realizing just how tired he was. Draco heard him and looked up from his book, then smiled and made his way over to sit next to Harry.

"Hey, Sleeping Beauty," Draco teased him, softly. Harry gave a tired smile, and Draco brushed Harry's hair back from his forehead. "How are you feeling, love?"

"Tired," Harry mumbled. He stared up at Draco. "You all right?" Draco nodded.

"After I woke up, I had no more pain," he assured Harry, who let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you, Harry." He changed the subject. "You're so tired because you used nearly all of your energy on me, and you're drained. I'm grateful that you helped, but please, don't ever do that again. You've been sleeping almost thirty-six hours, and I've been quite worried."

"That long?" 

Draco nodded, and Harry squinted his eyes a little, trying to sort out what he wanted to ask Draco. It was difficult, as he was so exhausted that his thoughts were mixed together and he couldn't think clearly. Finally, Harry spoke again.

"No hospital wing?" Draco chuckled and shook his head.

"Mum and Dad thought it wasn't serious enough for that," he explained. "And they thought you'd sleep better down here. Sirius and Remus have been here once or twice. They're coming for dinner tonight." Draco stood up. "I'll be right back. I promised Mum I'd tell her when you're awake." Harry nodded, and Draco left the room. He returned moments later with Katie, who carried a small tray of food.

"Hey, sweetie," she said to Harry, smiling warmly. "How would you like something to eat?" 

Harry nodded, and Katie placed the tray over his lap. Draco helped Harry to sit up, then nodded to his mother, who left the room. Harry slowly reached for a spoon and dipped it into his soup. His hand trembled as he brought the spoon to his mouth, spilling more soup than he ate. He sighed and dropped the spoon into the bowl, causing some of the broth to splash onto Draco.

"Sorry," Harry mumbled, laying his head on Draco's shoulder.

"Don't worry about it," Draco assured him. He took the spoon and got a bit of soup on it, then held it to Harry's mouth. "Open." Harry accepted it, and Draco continued to feed the boy.

"Who would have ever thought that you'd have such good mothering skills?" Harry joked, tiredly. He sighed. "I feel like I'm five years old¼" Draco kissed the top of his head.

"You need to eat, and you can't very well do that if your hands are so shaky," he told him. "You'll probably be better by dinner. You just need to regain some more strength, and if that requires me to take care of you, then so be it." Harry smiled slightly and laid his head on Draco's shoulder, nestling his face in the blond boy's neck.

"I can't eat any more," he murmured. Draco placed the tray on the floor, then lay down with Harry, wrapping his arms around the dark-haired boy's waist.

"I love you," Draco purred in Harry's ear. Harry grinned and placed light kisses on Draco's neck.

"I love you, too¼" Harry yawned and snuggled up to Draco. "Don't move. I'm going back to sleep on you."

"All right. I'm not sure that I'll make a very good pillow, but whatever you want." He glanced down and smiled when he saw that Harry was already asleep.


	28. Chapter 28

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

Several days later, on a Saturday, Harry went home to spend the day with his fathers. He received a surprise when he came through the fireplace, however: a young girl and boy were sitting between Sirius and Remus on the sofa. 

"Hey, kiddo," Sirius greeted Harry.

"Hi, Dad, Daddy," Harry said, nodding. "Who's this?"

"This is Kayla and Sean," Remus said. Sean was older than Kayla, and both kids seemed to be very shy. They stared up at him with big brown eyes. Harry smiled and waved at them.

"Hi, Kayla, Sean." They gave tiny waves back, and Harry looked back at Remus.

"We have to talk, Harry," Remus told him. "Sirius, stay with these two." Remus and Harry went into the kitchen and sat at the table. "They are brother and sister. Both were bitten by werewolves; Sean was six, Kayla was three; they were attacked at the same time. A few months later, their parents got fed up with the whole full-moon thing, and they abandoned them. They've been on their own for the past three years. I found them a few days ago. Kayla had been hit by a silver bullet." Harry's eyes widened. "Don't worry, she's fine now. We've taken good care of her; of both of them."

"So now what?" Harry wondered where this conversation was going.

"Harry, Sirius and I were wondering how you'd feeling about having a younger brother and sister." Harry's mouth dropped open, and he didn't speak for a moment. "Harry?"

"You really mean it? I've always wanted siblings!" Harry grinned, as did Remus.

"Good, because we were going to go to the Ministry on Monday and formally adopt them."

Harry threw his arms around his father in a hug, and then the two of them went out to the living room. Harry sat next to the kids and began to talk to them. Sean was a little more outgoing than his sister. Harry was a little disappointed when Kayla gave only short answers to his questions or comments. Finally, Harry leaned over to whisper in her ear, and she giggled.

"What did you say to her?" Sirius wondered, suspiciously.

"Nothing," Harry replied, innocently. "Dad, Daddy, can we all go out and do something today?"

"Such as¼?" Harry looked to Kayla and Sean.

"Ice cream?" he suggested. They nodded. "Ice cream. And shopping."

"I suppose we could," Sirius agreed. "We need to buy some clothes and things, anyway. Harry, you can bring some friends along, if you'd like."

"Nah," Harry declined. "I think I'd just like to spend the day with my family. Can we leave now?" The older wizards laughed at Harry's eagerness, and they all headed out the door and walked to Hogsmeade. Kayla still wasn't feeling very well, so Harry carried her on his back.

"Harry, why don't you take Sean and Kayla for some ice cream, and anywhere else you'd like to go?" Sirius suggested. "We'll go get the essential stuff, and meet you at The Three Broomsticks in an hour. And be _careful_, all right?" Harry nodded and lowered Kayla to the ground, then took the two kids by their hands and headed for the ice cream shop.

"How old are you two?" Harry asked the kids as they sat at a table.

"I'm nine," Sean replied. "Kay's six." Suddenly, Kayla's ice cream toppled off the cone and landed on the floor. Her lower lip began to tremble, and her eyes watered a little.

"Hey, don't worry about it," Harry told her, softly. He snapped his fingers, and Kayla instantly had a coneful of ice cream again. "How's that?" Kayla stared at him, wide-eyed, and Sean just grinned.

"How'd you do that without a wand?" he asked. Harry shrugged his shoulders.

"I don't know. I just can, I guess. I've been working on it since last summer." He tried to think of things to ask the kids, but his thoughts were suddenly cut off by Sean.

"You play Quidditch, right?" Harry nodded; he had decided to go back to the Gryffindor team. "I've always wanted to learn how to play."

"I'll teach you sometime," Harry promised. "Can you fly yet?"

"Kind of. Remus and Sirius--what am I supposed to call them now?--they said they'd help me learn how to fly better soon." Harry chuckled.

"I call Sirius 'Dad' and Remus 'Daddy.' You two should probably do the same; otherwise, it would cause a lot of confusion." 

"Daddy said you have to leave tonight," Kayla said, suddenly. Harry confirmed this. "Why?"

"I have to go back to school. I'd stay home until tomorrow, but I have homework to do, along with a few other things. But I come home just about every weekend." By then, they were finished with their ice cream, and so they headed back outside. Kayla held her arms up to Harry, who lifted her up and carried her as they went towards Honeydukes.

"Are you tired?" Harry asked the little girl. She nodded, laying her head on Harry's shoulder, and he continued to carry her as they picked out a bunch of candies and sweets. It was then nearly time to meet Sirius and Remus, so the three kids went to The Three Broomsticks.

"Hi, Harry!" Madame Rosmerta, the owner, exclaimed as Harry and the little ones sat at an empty table. She came over to take their order. "Who are these two little ones?"

"This is Kayla and Sean," Harry replied. He looked at the kids. "That's Madame Rosmerta. She owns this place." He then looked back at the pretty woman. "I don't think we're going to order anything just yet, thanks. We're waiting for Dad and Daddy."

"Not anymore, you aren't." Sirius lifted Kayla up, then sat back down with her in his lap. Remus sat next to Harry and Sean.

"Hello, Rosmerta," Remus greeted the woman. They ordered some beverages, and Rosmerta went off to get them. "How did you three get on?"

"Harry's going to teach me how to play Quidditch as soon as I can fly better!" Sean exclaimed.

"And I'm sure Dad could help when I'm not around, right?" Harry suggested, looking at Sirius. "He played, too, when he went to Hogwarts."

"What house are you in?" Kayla wondered, resting her head on Sirius's chest.

"Gryffindor," Harry responded. "Fifth year."

"I hope _I'm_ in Gryffindor when I go," Sean commented. "I bet Kay's going to be in Ravenclaw. She's real smart."


	29. Chapter 29

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

"How was your visit with Sirius and Remus?" Draco wondered as he, Harry, and Hermione sat in the Gryffindor common room that evening. Harry's raven, Midnight, was flying around the room.

"Midnight, still!" Harry commanded. Midnight flew down to perch on the arm of the sofa, and Harry reached over to stroke his feathers. "The visit was great. The family's been upgraded by two. Dad and Daddy found two little abandoned werewolves a few days ago, and they're adopting them. Sean's nine, and Kayla's six. I've always wanted brothers and sisters, you know? Oh, and I also found out that after Katie has the baby, Daddy's taking over the Defense classes for her. He's also going to be the substitute for her if she has to miss any classes this term."

"Those two are by far the best Defense teachers we've ever had," Hermione commented. "Quirrell was terrible, Lockhart was worse, and Moody wasn't even Moody." She stood up, yawning and stretching her arms. "I think I'll go to bed a little early. Good night, you two." She went up to her dorm, leaving Harry and Draco alone.

"Have you found anything?" Harry asked, softly. He and Draco had been searching everywhere they could think of for a way to remove the Dark Mark.

"I think so," Draco replied, leaning into Harry's arms. He picked up a book from the table and showed it to Harry. It was entitled _Secrets of the Dark Lord_. "Dumbledore gave me this when I talked to him. He said that it's one of only three copies in the whole world." He opened the book to a marked page and showed it to Harry, who read it quietly.

" 'The Death Eaters wore a sign, the Dark Mark, a skull with a serpent protruding from its mouth like a tongue, burned into their left inner forearm by their Dark Lord. When Voldemort touches the Mark of one Death Eater, the rest are summoned.'" He scanned the rest of the section, looking for anything related to getting rid of the Mark. Draco grabbed the book and found a spot, running his fingers across the page as he read aloud.

" 'Most people think that once a Death Eater receives the Dark Mark, it remains there forever. There is, however, one way to be rid of it. The only way to fight hate is with love, and true love is key in fighting the Dark Lord. Two people who love each other may be soul mates, and therefore can remove the mark. It is done through sexual intercourse-'"

"But then," Harry interrupted, "why do you still have it?" Draco held up a hand and continued to read.

" 'It is done through sexual intercourse, with the intent of removing the Mark.' Meaning that, when we were together after Christmas, we had no intention of removing the Mark, so that's why it's still there. 'During intercourse, the partner of the person with the Mark must touch the forearm and speak the words _'Retournus Levis,'_ which mean 'Return to Light.'" The two were silent for a moment until finally, Harry spoke.

"If Dumbledore knew about this¼ Wouldn't he have given the book to Severus? He still has the Mark."

"Dad can only keep spying if he has the Mark," Draco explained. "When he decides to stop spying, Dumbledore said that he'd give him the book. He's probably going to stop soon, because of Mum and the baby and everything." Harry nodded in understanding, then smirked and tapped the book.

"How can I be sure this is real and not just an excuse for you to get in bed with me?" he teased. Draco chuckled.

"We'll just have to try it and see, then, won't we?" he said, innocently. He sat in Harry's lap, facing him, and wrapped his arms around the boy's neck. He leaned in to give Harry a kiss.

"When do you want to do it?" Harry murmured.

"As soon as possible."

"I'll see if we can have the house tomorrow afternoon." Draco hugged Harry and leaned his head up to whisper in his ear.

"Thank you for doing this for me," Draco whispered.

"Well, it's not like it doesn't benefit _me_ as well." Harry smirked.

Suddenly, the portal opened, and Ron Weasley stepped into the common room. He saw Harry and Draco cuddling together, and he gave them a disgusted glare. Draco moved to get off of Harry's lap, but Harry rested his hands on the blond boy's waist.

"Stay," Harry murmured. "I'm comfortable like this." He cast a glance at Ron, who stood with his arms folded across his chest and scowled at the couple.

"Do you have a problem, _Weasel_?" Draco sneered, emphasizing the name.

"Yes, actually, I _do_ have a problem, _Malfoy_," Ron spat out. "I don't appreciate you two getting it on in the common room, where everyone can see you." Harry looked around.

"I don't see 'everyone'; just us and you," he commented, innocently. "And considering the way you've been treating me the past several months, I really don't care what you do or do not appreciate. I _will_ say, however, that if you really think we were 'getting it on'-as you so eloquently phrased it-then you really need some more lessons on sex education." 

Draco chuckled, and Ron just turned to the stairs, to go up to the dormitory. Harry waved his hand towards the red-haired boy, and Draco burst out laughing. Ron was now no longer a red-haired boy. Harry had turned his hair purple.


	30. Chapter 30

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

The next afternoon, Harry and Draco lay in Harry's bed at the house, nude and holding each other under the blankets. Harry tossed an arm across Draco's stomach and laid his head on Draco's chest, dropping light kisses over the blond's pale skin.

"How are you feeling?" Harry murmured, reaching his head up to kiss Draco's neck and shoulder.

"Hurts a little," Draco admitted. He smirked. "But who's the god now?" Harry grinned, then glanced at Draco's arm. 

"Did it work?" he wondered. Draco lifted his arm, and they looked at the inside of his forearm.

"I think so," Draco replied. "It doesn't always show, but¼ I looked at it a while ago, after you said the words, and it kind of lit up a bit, but that was all. Time will tell, I suppose." He looked at the clock. "They'll be home soon. Do you think we should get up?" Harry shook his head, cuddling up to Draco.

"If they feel the need to try and come in here, they'll see a note on my door that says 'leave us alone, we'll be out when we're ready' or something to that effect." Draco chuckled. "I love you, Draco, you know?"

"I love you, too, Harry," Draco said, softly, as he smoothed back Harry's unruly, sweaty hair. Harry smiled slightly, as though remembering something. "What are you thinking about?"

"I remember last summer," Harry said in a dreamy voice. "After they did whatever to me, every day, I would make up scenarios about how I might be rescued¼ I'd dream about being rescued while I slept¼ Every time, I ended up being saved by someone with blond hair and gray eyes. It wasn't until I got to school that I realized it was you. And my dreams came true. You saved me from that hell. Indirectly, but you saved me. That was when I realized I love you."

"So I suppose I was your 'knight in shining armor?'" Draco teased. "All we need now is to 'ride off into the sunset.'" He kissed Harry's forehead. "I realized I love you when I found you in the Astronomy Tower, and I saw that I might lose you." Harry hugged Draco tightly, closing his eyes and giving a content sigh. "Don't go to sleep now, love. We have to get up soon and have dinner with your family before going back to school."

"I don't want to," Harry whined. "Can't we just, tell them we're dead or something? At least for a few hours, days, weeks, whatever?" Draco leaned down to kiss Harry's lips, then climbed out of bed.

"Come on. I heard them come through the door, and I want to meet the little ones." Harry just lay on his side, watching as Draco bent over to pull his boxer shorts on. Draco finished pulling all of his clothes on, then turned to see Harry staring at him and grinned. "Are you looking at my arse?"

"Well, it _is_ a cute arse," Harry commented, innocently. "And there are a few things I'd like to do to that arse, that I didn't do today¼ But let's save that for another day, shall we?" He climbed out of the bed and pulled his clothes on, and as he stood again, he felt Draco wrapping his arms around him from behind.

"If only we could be alone for more than a few hours¼" Draco purred into Harry's ear. He gently nibbled on the lobe, causing Harry to moan a little. Draco then backed away and took Harry's hand in his own. "Let's go."

"Oh, you're such a tease," Harry said, pouting. He reached a hand to the back of Draco's neck, pulling his face down, and kissed him passionately. 

"I'm not the only one," Draco retorted, breathlessly. "All right, enough, or else we won't get downstairs." He pulled out his wand and waved it at the room. "_Retournus Normalus_." 

Instantly, the room was neat and clean again, and the boys headed downstairs. Remus held Kayla in his arms, while Sean lay on the couch, obviously in pain. Sirius sat next to Sean, gently examining his hand. Harry rushed over to them.

"What happened?" 

"He tripped, and when he grabbed for something to keep him up, it was a silver fence post," Sirius sighed, not looking away from the wound. Harry touched his father's shoulder and gave him a meaningful look.

"Let me see it." Sirius nodded and let Harry take his place. "Hey, Sean, I want you to take a deep breath, all right?" Sean did so, and Harry prepared to lower his hand to the wound. 

"No, don't touch it!" Sean cried out. "If you touch it, you might--"

"It's all right," Harry cut him off, soothingly. "I know the risks. I know what I'm doing." He touched the wound, murmuring a few words under his breath, and then took his hand away. The wound was completely healed. "How's that?"

"Better, thanks, Harry," Sean responded, looking at his hand. Remus lowered Kayla to the floor.

"Kay, Sean, go get washed up for supper," Remus requested. The two ran to the bathroom, and Sirius headed for the kitchen. "Harry, thank you for doing that. But I think that, before you experiment any more with your powers, we should speak with Dumbledore about them, all right?" Harry nodded. "Anyway, how was your afternoon? Everything work out?" Remus had known their reason for wanting the house to themselves.

"We think so, but we're not sure," Draco responded. "We have to wait and see." Remus nodded in understanding.

Ten minutes later, the six sat around the dinner table. Harry introduced the kids to Draco, who seemed fascinated by them, and vice-versa as well.

"Do you play Quidditch, too?" Sean wondered. Harry chuckled.

"Yes, I do, when I get a chance," Draco replied. "I used to be the Slytherin Seeker, but I quit the team."

"Why?" Sean asked, his eyes wide. Draco chose his words carefully for the answer.

"Well, the people on my team just¼weren't being very nice to me. I couldn't cooperate with them anymore."

"How come they weren't being nice?" Kayla asked, frowning. Draco glanced at Harry, who shrugged his shoulders.

"They didn't really like the idea of me and Harry being as close as we are," Draco said after a moment of thinking.

"Are you and Harry close like Dad and Daddy are?" Kayla pressed. Sirius raised an eyebrow as he looked at the two teens, and Harry smirked.

"Yes, we _are_ close like Dad and Daddy are," Harry told Kayla. "Dad and Daddy love each other very much. Draco and I love each other very much." He glanced at Draco and spoke to him telepathically.

__

-The difference is that Dad and Daddy reveal how much they love each other by forgetting to put Silencing Spells on their bedroom.

Draco's eyes widened, and he nearly spit out his pumpkin juice. He punched Harry in his arm.

"Next time, wait until I've swallowed whatever is in my mouth!" 

"Harry," Sirius said in a warning tone. Harry glanced up at him, smiling innocently.

"I didn't do anything wrong, Dad." He looked at his watch. "Hey, look at that: It's time for Draco and me to go back to school!" He stood up, as did Draco. Harry went around the table, giving everyone a hug and a kiss on their heads.

"We'll see you soon, kid," Remus said. "Draco, say hi to your parents for us." Draco nodded, and he and Harry went back to the Snape dungeons, through the Floo.


	31. Chapter 31

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~

"Hey, Mum," Draco greeted Katie as he and Harry entered the Defense classroom several weeks later.

"Hi, sweetie," Katie said, kissing Draco's forehead. "Hello, Harry." Harry gave a slight wave. "I thought you two knew that class was cancelled today."

"We knew, but we decided to pay you a visit anyway," Draco explained. Then he pouted. "Unless you want us to leave¼"

"No, no, dear, you can stay," Katie assured him. Draco smirked at Harry, who gave a slight smile. "I just need to finish grading some papers, and then I'll be free."

"Why'd you cancel class?" Harry wondered as Katie scribbled various comments on students' assignments.

"I felt like it," Katie replied, simply. She chuckled. "Really, I just felt I deserved a break, as did you all." She rested a hand on her bulging tummy. "The little one's been giving me some problems, so I decided to just take a couple of hours and relax."

"Everything okay, Mum?" Draco asked, a look of worry in his eyes. Katie patted his hand and continued to scribble with her quill.

"Just fine, sweetie. This happens when it gets closer to the due date."

"Do you think it's a boy or a girl?" Harry inquired.

"I think it will be a girl," Katie commented. "Severus and I could find out easily, of course, but we want to be surprised." She changed the subject. "Why don't you two go wait for me in the back room? There's some food in there, if you're hungry, and I'll be done here in about ten minutes."

Draco and Harry went into the room that Katie used as a kind of break room. She had stocked all kinds of snack foods and such in there, to take care of her pregnancy cravings. Draco went to a cupboard and pulled out a box of chocolates, then sat at the table with Harry, who looked a little dazed.

"You all right, love?" Draco asked, gently. He touched Harry's hand, and the dark-haired boy snapped his head up to look at Draco.

"Hm?" Draco frowned.

"Harry, are you all right?" he asked again. "You don't look so good. Is something wrong?"

"I¼don't know¼" Harry replied, slowly.

Suddenly, he fell to his knees and clutched his forehead in pain, letting out a strangled cry. Draco quickly knelt down next to him, taking him in his arms and gently lowering him the rest of the way to the floor. Tears spilled from Harry's closed eyes as he writhed in pain. Draco began to panic, not knowing what to do.

"Mum!" Draco shouted. "Mum, help!" Katie rushed into the room at the frantic tone in her son's voice.

"Honey, what's happening to him?" she asked, worried.

"I don't know, Mum!" Draco cried, holding Harry's hand in his own. "I think it's his scar; it connects him with Voldemort¼"

Just then, Harry stopped squirming, though his hand still held onto his head. His body twitched a little every few seconds. He slowly opened his eyes a little and looked up at Draco.

"Are you okay, love?" Draco murmured, gently caressing Harry's cheek.

"Scar¼burns¼ Voldemort¼" Harry barely whispered. "They're looking¼for you¼ Both of us¼ Cruciatus¼ Hurts¼" As he closed his eyes again, Draco glanced up at Katie.

"What do we do?" 

"Take him to the hospital wing," Katie sighed. "Again¼ I suppose I could levitate-"

"I can carry him," Draco cut her off. Katie gave him a skeptical look, but he insisted. "He still weighs next to nothing. I can carry him, Mum."

"Fine," Katie relented. "You carry him up there, and I'll be right behind you."

Half an hour later, Draco sat next to Harry on a bed in the infirmary. Harry laid his head in Draco's lap; he was awake, but extremely tired. His body was still a little shaky. The Snapes, Dumbledore, McGonagall, and Pomfrey all stood around the room, speaking to each other.

"He was talking about his scar burning, and Voldemort," Katie explained to the other adults. "He said that they were looking for him and Draco, and he said something about the Cruciatus Curse."

"That explains the twitching," Pomfrey sighed. "Perhaps he will be able to tell us what he saw in an hour or so." Suddenly, Harry spoke up in a quiet voice.

"We were in a dungeon¼ Me and Draco," he said, weakly. "All kinds of torturing devices around¼ Voldemort¼ Death Eaters were in there with us¼ Lucius was there, not in Azkaban¼" Draco's eyes widened, and Severus squeezed his shoulder. "They used¼Cruciatus¼ on Draco¼ Then on me¼ I could feel it, it hurt so bad¼ Tortured us¼" Harry closed his eyes again, and Draco held his hand tightly.

"Harry, your fathers will be here shortly," Dumbledore said after a moment of silence. "I believe that Madam Pomfrey would like you to stay here and rest for the remainder of the day, so we will leave you alone for now." He and McGonagall left, as did Katie and Severus. Draco stood, but Harry grabbed his hand and pulled him back.

"Stay," Harry pleaded. 

Draco nodded, silently, and sat back down, just as Remus, Sirius, Sean, and Kayla came into the room. Kayla ran and jumped onto the bed, wrapping her arms around Harry and hugging him tightly. Harry inhaled sharply as he felt the weight of her land on his middle.

"Kay, get off of Harry, sweetie," Remus requested. Harry waved his hand.

"She's fine, it was just sudden¼" Kayla slid over so that she was laying next to Harry, instead of on top of him.

"How are you feeling, kiddo?" Sirius asked, standing behind Sean.

"Terrible, thanks," Harry sighed. 

"Harry, why are you shaking?" Kayla wondered. Harry glanced at Draco.

__

-How do I explain the Cruciatus to a six year old? 

Draco shrugged his shoulders, and Harry scowled a little. Kayla, not appreciating the fact that she had received no answer, repeated her question.

"Why are you shaking? Are you cold?"

"Yeah, Kay-Kay, I'm cold," Harry responded with a mental sigh of relief. Kayla grabbed the blanket and tucked it around her oldest brother. Harry gave her a smile. "Thanks, sweetie." He noticed that Remus was cradling something in his arms, and his eyes brightened a little. "Did you bring my Peachy?" Remus chuckled and handed the cat over to Harry, who hugged her to his chest.

"Madam Pomfrey's not going to like that one bit," Sirius warned him, smirking.

"Ha... Maybe you should transform, Dad," Harry suggested, tiredly. "Then she'll come in and find _two_ animals in the hospital wing..." He sighed. "I hate being in here..."

"You know you're in the infirmary too often when they have a set of pajamas and a special bed reserved especially for you," Draco commented. Harry nodded his head in agreement. Draco looked at his watch. "Listen, love, I have to get to class, but I'll come by later and see how you're doing, all right?" Harry nodded, and Draco gave him a quick kiss before leaving.

"Sean, Kayla, why don't you two take Peachy over there--" Sirius pointed towards the beds on the other side of the room "--and play with her for a bit so Daddy and I can talk to your brother?" The kids obliged, and Sirius and Remus sat in chairs on either side of Harry's bed.

"Why are you _really_ shaking, Harry?" Remus asked, softly.

"I had a vision where me and Draco had been captured by Death Eaters, and they were torturing us. They used the Cruciatus on us, and I could feel it. It wasn't nearly as bad as it is in real life, but it hurt really bad. It _still_ hurts... Shaking and twitching is an after-effect of the curse."

"Looks like we're going to have to keep an extra-careful eye on you from now on, then." Sirius squeezed Harry's hand. "I'm not letting them take you away from me again, kiddo. You're stuck with me now." Harry groaned.

"Damn, and I was _so_ sure I'd be able to get away for good this time," he muttered, causing his fathers to chuckle.

"Watch the language," Remus warned him, smiling. Harry glanced back and forth between Sirius and Remus.

"Are you staying?"

"For a little while," Sirius responded. Harry frowned.

"I want to go home," he sighed.

"You can come home, soon enough," Remus promised. He smirked. "Or have you forgotten that your Easter holidays start the day after tomorrow?" Harry's eyes lit up.

"Really?" He frowned again. "I kind of haven't been paying much attention to which day is which lately. It's all kind of been running together."

"Have you been sleeping much?" Sirius asked, more than a little concerned.

"As much as normal," Harry replied. "I've just¼been really tired, I guess. I'm looking forward to the vacation, so I can just relax. I just hope I'll be _able_ to relax now¼" He changed the subject. "All right, this may seem like a random question, but I've been wondering for a while now, and I was hoping one of you might know. Why was Severus so accepting of me and Draco, when Draco first told him? He doesn't really strike me as the type who would approve of same-sex relationships." Sirius and Remus laughed.

"You mean you don't know?" Sirius said, surprised. "Harry, Snape's bisexual. It would be kind of hypocritical of him to disapprove based on that reason alone." He glanced at Remus, then leaned over to Harry's ear and lowered his voice. "That's part of the reason why he hates me. He and I were together for a few months, and I was the one who broke it off." Harry smiled and nodded in understanding, then lay back down on his pillow.

"Well, now that you've explained that to me¼" He yawned. "All right if I go to sleep for a bit?"

"Go ahead," Remus responded. "We'll stay until you fall asleep."


	32. Chapter 32

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. Well, a couple of things, I suppose. But the closest I come to owning Harry Potter is owning the books, so find somebody else to sue.

~~~  
Wow, you guys have no idea how happy you've made me, what with the great reviews and all! I love the feedback, so keep it coming. In response to some of your comments….

****

Shades: I don't know what site the poem was on, I looked at so many of them that I can't remember. But the rose translations were easy enough to find, I just looked in a search engine.

****

Nightshade: I haven't been writing Ron into the story much because, quite frankly, I don't like him. *L* But I'll try to write more of him in the future and see if things can be cleared up about him. Maybe I'll have him on his knees, begging for forgiveness and apologizing for being such a prat. Haha just kidding.

****

Everyone else who reviewed: Thank you! 

~~~

"Harry? Harry, wake up!" 

He'd been having a fitful sleep the second night of his Easter holidays, when a frantic voice woke him. He opened his eyes slightly, feeling strong hands gripping his shoulders. Once he was slightly awake, he found that he was trembling, crying, and in a bit of pain. He was also finding it difficult to breathe properly. Looking up, he saw that Remus was the one yelling and holding onto his arms. Sirius stood at the foot of the bed, watching with a look of worry on his face.

"Finally!" Remus sighed with relief. "Are you all right, Harry? What were you dreaming about?" Harry took a breath before answering, but it got caught in his throat, causing him to gasp a little. "Harry, calm down and try to control your breathing." Harry took a couple of small breaths, then tried to speak.

"It hurts," he whispered. "All over." He grasped Remus's hand. "Daddy, please, make it stop hurting..."

"Siri, go get a Pain-Relieving Potion!" Remus requested. 

Sirius left the room, then returned with a small vial of potion. Remus pulled Harry into a sitting position and poured the liquid into his mouth. Harry curled up against Remus's side, burying his face in his chest. Remus wrapped his arms around Harry, whispering comforting words into his ear.

"Calm down, Harry, everything will be fine. Just calm down and relax, and you'll feel a lot better." Within minutes, Harry's grip on Remus loosened, and his body relaxed considerably. "Are you all right? Do you want to talk about it?"

"Same as last vision," Harry sighed, laying his head on Remus's shoulder. Sirius sat on the other side of Harry, gently rubbing his back. 

"Cruciatus?" Sirius asked, softly. Harry nodded. "Harry, you know we'll do our damndest to keep you safe."

"I know," Harry murmured, closing his eyes. Remus glanced at Sirius.

"Go on to bed," Remus said, quietly. "I'll stay in here for a while." The two exchanged a kiss over Harry's head, and Sirius squeezed Harry's shoulder before leaving the room.

"You don't have to stay up with me," Harry whispered. Remus sighed and stroked his son's hair.

"Do you really think I'll be able to sleep until _you're_ asleep?" 

"Then be prepared for a long night, because I rarely go back to sleep after nightmares." Suddenly, Peachy appeared in the doorway. She padded over to the bed, jumped up, and curled up to fall asleep on Harry's stomach.

"Tomorrow, I'll see if Severus can give us some Dreamless Sleep Potion." Harry shook his head. "Why not?"

"It doesn't always work. Besides, prolonged use is dangerous."

"Then we'll figure _something_ out. Either way, I'm staying up with you." Harry leaned into Remus's embrace.

"Thank you, Daddy¼" The two were silent for a while, listening to the sound of the wind outside Harry's window. Then Remus spoke again.

"Are you still awake?" Harry nodded. "Have you thought about what you're going to do after you graduate from Hogwarts?" Harry sighed softly, gently stroking Peachy's fur. He then looked up at Remus with sad eyes.

"I'm still wondering if I'm going to _make_ it to graduation." Remus frowned and opened his mouth to speak, but Harry cut him off. "Come on, Daddy, face it: Every year, it's either Voldemort or something else. First year, it was Voldemort in Quirrell. Second year, the Chamber of Secrets. Third year, well, that wasn't that bad, except I nearly got Kissed by a dementor. Fourth year¼" He swallowed hard and didn't finish his thought. "And this year¼I tried to kill myself. I was attacked and nearly dead. And I'm ninety-nine percent certain that Voldemort's coming after me again. At the rate I'm going, it will be a miracle if I graduate." 

The vulnerable look on his son's face caused tears to well up in Remus's eyes, and he held Harry in a silent embrace. Harry didn't speak another word. He just laid his head on Remus's shoulder, staring across the room.

"Harry," Remus said, suddenly. His voice was quiet and shaky, as though he was trying not to cry. "Harry, Sirius and I love you. You know that. And we'll do anything and everything in our power to make sure that you're safe, and that you make it well-beyond graduation. We won't let you die until he and I have been gone for a long time."

Those were the last words that were spoken. Remus and Harry sat in a comfortable silence for the rest of the morning.


	33. Chapter 33

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing.

~~~

"Harry?" Kayla climbed into her oldest brother's lap at breakfast the next morning. She looked up at him with her big brown eyes. "Can we go to the park today?"

"I'm afraid not, sweetie," Harry replied, yawning sleepily. "Sev and Katie are taking Draco to Australia for a week, so I'm going to spend the today with him, before he leaves. Maybe tomorrow, all right?"

"Okay," Kayla sighed, sliding off of his lap. She went into the living room with Sean, and Harry turned to his fathers. Remus looked exhausted, as he had stayed awake with Harry the night before, and Harry felt a stab of guilt in his chest.

__

Damn it, why didn't I just go back to sleep, or at least fake it? He shouldn't have felt like he had to stay up with me¼

Harry broke from his guilty daze when he realized that Sirius and Remus were both staring at him, concern written on their faces.

"I'm sorry, did you say something?" Sirius sighed, shaking his head.

"Harry, you look dead. Are you sure you're feeling up to going out today?"

"Of course! I'm just fine. Listen, I'm going to go change my clothes, and then I'm going to meet Draco in Hogsmeade. I'll see you later, all right?" 

He downed the rest of his cereal, then gave each of his fathers a hug and went upstairs. After changing his clothes, he ran out of the house and made the five-minute trip to Hogsmeade. He met up with Draco at The Three Broomsticks and gave him a hug.

"Hey, love." Draco greeted him with a tiny peck on his lips, and the two made their way to a table, hand in hand. "You didn't come here by yourself, did you? You know you're not supposed to be out alone."

"Neither are you," Harry muttered. "I ran out before anybody could come with me. It was only a five-minute walk. Everything's fine." Draco stared at him for a moment, his eyes studying Harry's face.

"Is something wrong?" Draco reached for Harry's hand over the table, gently caressing his fingers. "You look¼_tired_. Exceptionally tired."

"Just fine," Harry assured him with a smile that seemed forced. He quickly changed the subject. "Now, what are we doing today?" Draco sighed, frowning.

"Why are you lying to me, love?" he asked, softly. "Something's wrong. I can tell." Harry glared at him, but finally gave in.

"I had a nightmare last night," he said, nonchalantly. "So what else is new?" He gave a tiny sigh and sniffled a little, which pressed a little 'Worry' button in Draco's mind. Draco moved around the table to sit next to Harry, placing an arm around his back and holding his hand.

"Honey, please," Draco murmured, leaning his head against Harry's. "Tell me what's on your mind." Harry blinked his eyes a couple times, then looked at Draco with sad eyes.

"It woke Dad and Daddy up," he whispered. "Daddy insisted on staying up with me the rest of the night. Neither of us went to sleep after about two o'clock, and he was exhausted at breakfast this morning. He shouldn't have had to do that for me, Draco. I should have faked sleeping or something, so he could go to sleep, and I--" He swallowed a little. "I'm causing problems again. I don't like causing problems."

"Oh, Harry, I'm sure he didn't mind," Draco assured him, gently rubbing his back. "If he did, then he wouldn't have done it."

"We had one of those...sappy father-son talks. You know, the kind you see in the movies and stuff? He wanted to know if I thought about what I'd do after graduation. And do you know what I said to him? I said 'I'm still wondering if I'm going to _make_ it to graduation.'" Harry swiped at a tear on his cheek. "And he said that he and Dad will do anything they have to, to make sure I don't die until long after they're gone."

"Of course he said that," Draco said, softly. "What parent wants to bury their child? Honey, Remus and Sirius love you. They _love_ you, and they care about you more than anything; you, Sean, and Kayla. They're your parents, and they want to keep you safe and happy. That's nothing for you to feel bad about. You're not causing them any problems. You're not causing _anyone_ any problems." He kissed Harry's forehead. "Just forget about it, and try to be happy, all right? If I come home from Australia and find out that you've been moping about, then you're going to be in _big_ trouble, love."

"I try," Harry insisted, an adorable pout forming on his lips. Draco smiled and kissed him.

"The threat still stands. Now come on. We're going to have fun today, since we won't see each other for a week." Draco grabbed Harry by his hand and dragged him out of The Three Broomsticks. 

After several hours, the boys were walking through a field, a short distance away from the shopping town. They headed for a lake, hand in hand, when they suddenly felt themselves been ripped away from each other. Harry was thrown to the ground, hitting his head on a rock. He blinked his eyes as he became dizzy, and he saw two cloaked figures. Draco was struggling in the arms of one of them, but Harry couldn't hear anything they were saying. It was as if he'd gone deaf, until he heard one clear word.

"_Stupefy_!"


	34. Chapter 34--Final Chapter of PART ONE

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing.

~~~

"He should be back by now, Remus!" Sirius exclaimed, pacing back and forth in the kitchen that evening. Remus sat in a chair at the table, staring at his hands, as though in a trance. "Where the hell is he? Something's wrong; I know it!" Just then, Sean and Kayla appeared in the doorway.

"What's wrong, Dad?" Sean asked. "Where's Harry?"

"Daddy?" Kayla said in a small voice. She crawled up into Remus's lap, and he kissed her forehead, stroking her hair.

"Everything's fine," he said, softly. The fear in his eyes betrayed the calm tone in his voice, but the kids didn't see it. "Sean, take Kay upstairs and help her get ready for bed."

Sean grabbed Kayla's hand and took her upstairs. Sirius stopped pacing and stood behind Remus, leaning over and wrapping his arms around him. Remus reached a hand up to hold Sirius's, and the black-haired man rested his cheek on Remus's head.

"Maybe we should ask Severus and Katie if they know where he is," Sirius sighed. 

Remus nodded, and the two headed for the living room. As soon as Sirius took a pinch of Floo powder from the jar, Dumbledore's face appeared in the fireplace. The usual sparkles in his eyes had been replaced by sadness and worry. At this moment, Dumbledore really looked his age, and that scared Remus and Sirius.

"You both need to come to the school immediately," he told them. "Bring the kids; Katie will keep an eye on them. Come through the Floo in my office." With that, he disappeared. 

"Go on through," Sirius told Remus. "I'll go get the kids." Sirius went upstairs and found Sean and Kayla in the bathroom, brushing their teeth. "You two, come on, we have to go to the school." 

Within minutes, the entire Lupin-Black family, save Harry, was in Dumbledore's office, as were Severus and Katie Snape. Katie looked as though she'd been crying, and Severus was upset as well, resting his elbow on the side of his chair and covering his eyes with his hand. Katie took the kids into the next room, and Sirius and Remus sat in the empty chairs in front of Dumbledore's desk. Sirius reached over and tightly gripped his husband's hand.

"Several hours ago, in Hogsmeade, the Dark Mark was projected above the lake," the Headmaster told the two men, solemnly. "Witnesses saw Draco and Harry heading that way, and then saw two cloaked figures--Death Eaters--attack them, stun them, and Disapparate with them." He handed Sirius a piece of parchment. "I received this just an hour ago." Sirius and Remus began to read the letter.

__

The boy who betrayed his father and the Boy-Who-Lived have been taken into the custody of Lord Voldemort. Your attempts to rescue them will be in vain. They will die at the hands of the Dark Lord.

"Why didn't I follow him?" Remus whispered, staring at the floor. "Why did we let them go out alone? Damn it, I told him last night that we'd keep him safe..."

"We're doing everything we can to find them," Dumbledore said, softly. "Until then... We can only wait. And hope."

~~~

Draco opened his eyes and found himself in a dim, damp dungeon cell. He lifted himself into a sitting position and leaned back against a wall. Glancing around, he saw a body in a heap on the other side of the cell. Seeing a mop of unruly hair, Draco realized that it was Harry. Blood was dripping onto the floor by Harry's head, and Draco shakily crawled over to him.

"Harry," he whispered. "Honey, wake up..." He looked for the source of the blood and found that the back of Harry's head was cut open a little.

"I'm awake..." Harry mumbled, his voice hoarse. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, but you're bleeding." Harry reached back and touched the cut, trying to heal it, but found that he didn't have enough energy.

"Not that bad," he said, finally. With Draco's help, he sat up, and the two lay against the wall, tightly gripping each other's hands.

"Where are we?" Draco wondered, looking around the dungeon. He saw several torture devices, such as one that stretches a victim's arms and legs. There was also a bed, along with a table covered in weapons and 'toys.'

"The dungeon from my vision," Harry sighed. The two were silent for a moment.

"Do you think anyone will find us?" Draco asked. "Save us?" At that, they heard a high-pitched, sinister laughter from in front of them, and they looked up to find a man with red slits for eyes. He gave a morbid grin.

"No, I do not think so."

THE END………….

Oh, I'm cruel, I know. *grin* But don't worry, this was only Part One. Part Two, _The Long, Hard Road_, has already been started, and I'll post the first chapter or so soon. Until then, review!!!


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